


New Millennium

by WhiteCabaret



Category: Digimon Adventure Zero Two | Digimon Adventure 02
Genre: Abuse, Aftermath of Torture, Blow Jobs, Brainwashing, Domestic Violence, Hand Jobs, M/M, Master/Slave, Mild Blood, Past Torture, Physical Abuse, Post-Canon, Rape/Non-con Elements, Uses Sub and Dub Terminology, Whipping
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-02
Updated: 2020-09-03
Packaged: 2021-01-20 16:29:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 14
Words: 70,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21284723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiteCabaret/pseuds/WhiteCabaret
Summary: It took four long years, but the Kaiser finally won the game. Digital World in his grasp, leader of the Chosen Children collared and brainwashed under his control. But all empires eventually have to come tumbling down.
Relationships: Ichijouji Ken/Motomiya Daisuke | Davis Motomiya
Comments: 13
Kudos: 55





	1. The Kaiser's Victory

"Isn't it beautiful, Davis?" It took him four years to finally win the game. Yes, that was a lot longer than he originally planned, but by god he did it! Capturing Davis was the first and most crucial step. Without their leader, the Chosen Children became weak. The blond boy, known apparently as TK, stepped in at one point to lead, but he failed. One by one the Kaiser annihilated their Digimon. He clearly remembered each one as it succumbed to dust and reformed as an egg. Even the older children tried stepping in, but they too fell to his power. Now the Kaiser had eleven DigiEggs in a glass case on display in his citadel. All trophies of his glorious victory. Now the Digital World was a barren wasteland. The sun never shone, leaving the sky to grey clouds that thundered now and then. The ground was dull and bare. Every Digimon sported a ring or spiral, controlled by the dark towers that stretched on as far as the eye could see. The Kaiser enjoyed his paradise for nearly a year now, and he never got tired of standing on the roof of his citadel and beholding his creation.

Davis stood beside the Kaiser, looking over the edge of the roof of the citadel down at the wasteland below. It stretched beyond the horizon, just rocks and dirt and dust, remnants of what might have been a village or a temple, now just completely annihilated ruins. The teenager's red eyes surveyed the ground, the horizon and the dark sky, and he nodded his head when he was spoken to. "Yes, Master, it is. You did an amazing job," he answered in the monotone he'd been speaking in for four years. Four years he didn't really seem to notice had passed. Fours years that changed him from a gangly pre-teen into a built teenager, skin a slightly darker tan and covered in scars from the countless times the Kaiser took out his frustrations on the boy throughout the long struggle for control of the Digital World. But in those four years, he stood loyally by the Kaiser's side thanks to the dark spiral. It malfunctioned once in a while, sure, but once the Kaiser secured the entire Digital World, building dark towers everywhere, the spiral stopped running into errors and a full year had gone by without a hitch.

"I really did, didn't I? You're good for noticing, Davis." The Kaiser changed over the years. He was still the insane suave character from fours years ago, but he'd grown in that time. He was taller, though still not meeting Davis in height, nor in build. It seemed the body he occupied was always meant to be lean and lithe. He abandoned the dark glasses, leaving his narrow eyes free to observe everything around him. Midnight colored hair grew out, nearly to his waist, but kept pulled back in a tight ponytail. A form fitting black, sleeveless crop top hugged his torso. Equally slim fitting black pants in combination with the shirt left a soft belly revealed, one he could never really tone no matter how hard he tried. Then there were the boots, tipped with metal, so a swift kick was all that was needed to assert his authority. "Would you change anything about it, Davis?"

"No, Master," Davis said, shaking his head. "I wouldn't. And besides," red eyes flicked over to the Kaiser, hands folded behind his back as he stood as if he were a soldier standing before his general, "It's not my place to."

The Kaiser nodded. "It's not. Very good. But tell me, Davis, at least the best you can." He walked forward, feet stopping just at the ledge where the wind blew up from the sides of his citadel. "If I gave you a small corner of this world, as a reward perhaps, what would you do with it?"

Davis seemed confused with that question. He frowned gently, a small turning down of dark lips. "I suppose... I would..." His monotone voice was choppy, and it faded off as he froze, staring at the Kaiser with unblinking red eyes. Despite the spiral's success at keeping him under its control, his enslaved personality hadn't evolved any further. It began to, once, when the Kaiser paid him special attention, but now he seemed to be the same mentally, even as his appearance changed throughout the years. So, when asked a question with an answer that required a deeper opinion, he froze up.

The Kaiser sighed. Sometimes he wanted to give Davis more mental freedom, but there were too many risks involved. Having a Yes-man was great, but having a conversation now and then would be nice. Oh well, such is the price for complete and utter devotion. "Maybe I can make this easier for you, Davis. Would you put trees or water there?"

"I don't have the ability to do that," was Davis' simple, straightforward answer.

The Kaiser grit his teeth. "I would help you with the design, Davis. Now choose!"

"Water," Davis finally responded. "It is needed for me to live."

"Ah..." The Kaiser smiled. "Using our head, are we? In addition to the water, would you put flowers or buildings there, Davis?"

"Buildings," Davis responded. "They would protect against the storms."

"Very good!" he praised. "Now, Davis, I must ask you: Don't you think having at least one tree around might be important?"

"For air?" Davis asked, red eyes trained on the Kaiser's back.

"Yes, Davis! Very good!" The Kaiser was rather impressed, to be perfectly honest. "All right, Davis, you have your water, your building, and your tree. Would you put the sun or the moon in the sky?"

Davis was quiet for a moment, then glanced up at the dark sky. "The moon," he finally answered. "Everything is digital... the tree doesn't need the sun. And... I like looking at the moon."

Now he looked over his shoulder. The answer was both logical and personal. Even though it had been years, the Kaiser was still wary of Davis getting personal or emotional. Everything seemed to be in order though, so he was left slightly in awe of Davis' response. "That is a lovely choice, Davis. Now one last question: If you could have any plaything, any toy with which to entertain yourself, what would it be?" The Kaiser chuckled. "And I don't count."

Davis opened his mouth to answer, but the Kaiser's last statement made him close it again. He thought for a while, the gears obviously turning in his head by the look on what would be an otherwise blank face. But after a very long pause, he simply shook his head. "I... don't know. I have not played with anything in a very long time, Master."

"I'm partial to carousels," the Kaiser said, not even bothering to acknowledge Davis' failure to come up with an original thought. Though the excuse was understandable.

"You said that once, one year and three months ago," Davis reported like some sort of record. "But I don't know what they are."

"Do you know what a merry-go-round is, Davis?"

"Oh," Davis said, seeming to recognize that phrasing better. "Yes, I do."

"They are the same thing. Merry-go-round is the common man's term for it. From now on, you will refer to them as carousels. Now, do you like carousels, Davis?"

Davis nodded, mentally noting the change. The Kaiser had been slowly shaping his vocabulary among other things. It was why he spoke so logically now when his enslaved mind would have otherwise stopped functioning at this point. "Yes, Master, I like carousels."

The Kaiser nodded. "Good, then that is what you shall have." Off in the distance, over the rolling thunder, came a loud buzzing noise. It burned in his ears, making the Kaiser cringe. Seeming to get louder and higher pitched, the teen finally turned around. "What is that horrible noise?" And he got his answer just a few seconds later when a too low flying Flymon swept right over his head. The Kaiser lost his balance and fell over the ledge, crying out and grabbing on just at the last second.

Davis seemed to stand in shock for a second, before he stepped over to the edge and grabbed the Kaiser's wrist. He pulled it up first, dislodging the other boy's hand so he could grab it, and then pulled the Kaiser up by it, slipping his other hand around the Kaiser's back to pull him onto solid footing again, having to take a step back in order to let the Kaiser's feet touch the rooftop, though they stood rather close together close to the edge.

"Davis, back up you idiot! If we both fall we're dead!" the Kaiser snapped viciously. He was angrier at that stupid Digimon who didn't have the mind to watch where it was flying.

Finally, Davis took a few long strides backwards, pulling the Kaiser along by his hand until they stood now in the middle of the rooftop. "Is this okay, Master?" Davis asked, eyes on the sky, as if expecting the Digimon to return and try to snatch the Kaiser or something.

Dark eyes looked to the sky as well, as if expecting the same thing. While he would never say it out loud, the Kaiser was a bit paranoid about Digimon breaking free of his control and coming after him. "I just want to go back inside now, Davis," he huffed.

"Yes, Master," Davis said with a nod. There was a small stairwell that led the way back inside the citadel. Davis moved them over to it and quickly opened the door, holding it open for the Kaiser to go through first, who accepted the gesture with a curt nod. The Kaiser wasted no time hurrying down the stairs, back down into the safe, dark, sturdy walls of his home. He walked briskly through the halls, huffing and muttering under his breath about this and that. Finally the Kaiser was back in his own room, seated in front of the mirror where he was trying to fix some bangs that fell into his face. Over and over again he tucked them behind his ear, smoothing them, making a red mark where is nails kept rubbing. The whole time, Davis followed at his heels. When they were back in the Kaiser's room, he stood behind him, watching the other boy carefully in the mirror. He recognized the obviously disturbed expression on the Kaiser's face, and watched him fiddle with his bangs. He frowned gently before speaking up. "Do you need any help, Master?"

"I want that Flymon found!" he barked and slammed his fists on the vanity top. Again the few stray stands fell loose and hung in his face. The Kaiser shouted, grabbed the scissors from the front drawer, and just cut the hairs clean off.

Davis seemed unfazed by the Kaiser's outburst and simply nodded his head. He stepped outside of the room for a few moments and soon returned. "It's being taken care of now, Master," Davis said as he came to stand behind the Kaiser again. His hand suddenly came forward and raked through the Kaiser's hair, as if trying to calm him down.

The Kaiser stood suddenly, dislodging Davis' hand from his hair. "Is it asking too much to be treated with respect? I'm the fucking Digimon Kaiser! Everyone should know this by now!" He paced the room, tense and breathing hard. "If you see me on the roof, fly higher so you don't knock me off! Move over to the left so you don't trample me! Swim deeper so you don't splash me! Is that really so hard? Am I asking for too much? Because I think I'm quite reasonable!"

"Of course you are," Davis said with a nod, his hand hanging in the air for a second before he let it fall to his side slowly. "They simply don't understand, Master. They aren't as smart as you are."

"Well that much is obvious," he groaned. "But you aren't nearly as brilliant as I am, but you still know not to walk on my heels or sit on me or jump on me. I know they're just stupid game pawns, but they know who I am and how they should treat me!" The Kaiser turned on his heels, gesturing wildly with his arm and hand. "I'll show them! I'll show all of them! This was the last time anyone threatens my life!"

Davis watched the Kaiser as he paced back and forth, letting him go on and on. After a moment of the Kaiser breathing hard, Davis piped up only with, "You're tense, Master," raising his hand again as he spoke.

"Of course I'm tense, Davis!" he spat. "I'm angry and upset!"

"Would you like me to help, Master?" he said quietly. It was an offer he made often, ever since the first time he managed to help calm the Kaiser. Sometimes the other boy took the offer, sometimes he was simply too worked up and Davis received the brunt of his frustrations. But either way, he still always offered.

This time he decided to accept, but not gracefully. "Fine," the Kaiser huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Although I'm sure there's nothing you can do. I'm so pissed right now."

Davis walked forward boldly, his hands folded behind his back. He came to stand in front of the Kaiser, red eyes locked on the other boy's face. "May I kiss you, Master?" he asked quietly.

The Kaiser was hesitant at first, still carrying a memory from four years ago when this offer spiraled out of control. Davis was calm at the moment, though, and stood like he normally did. Reserved and in control. Finally the Kaiser nodded. "If you feel you must."

Davis nodded, stepping forward again, until he stood over the Kaiser just slightly. When the other boy's head turned up a bit, dark lips pressed against pale ones. He tried nothing more, completely stable and obedient. He did no more than he was told he was allowed to, and that was simply the kiss. The Kaiser accepted the kiss with more grace than he had the initial offer. He allowed their lips to press together for a short time before pulling away. Damn it. Why did Davis always have to be right about this sort of thing? "You may kiss my cheek and neck if you like, and you may also use your hands. Modestly, Davis."

Davis just nodded again, moving his lips away from the Kaiser's mouth to kiss a line from his cheek to his ear, and then down his neck. He moved slowly and precisely, never rushing or lingering too long. Lips touched pearly skin for a moment, moving fast enough that they stayed interesting, but never seeming to be skimped upon to move on to the next kiss. This was an art Davis perfected. And while he followed this imaginary line with his lips, his hands came to rest on either side of the Kaiser's waist.

He hummed softly with delight. "You're very good, Davis." The Kaiser's hands came to touch Davis' chest. He could feel all the toned shapes beneath the snug, dark red muscle shirt he allowed the teen to wear, along with the pale washed straight jeans. Having his servant naked all the time was fun at first, but he grew a bit bored of the image after a year or so. "You always make your Master happy."

"I'm glad, Master," Davis said between kisses as his lips ghosted down the gentle curve of the Kaiser's neck. His hands slid around the Kaiser's back, nails ghosting over it as they met in the curve of the small of his back. When his lips hit the small crook of the other boy's neck and shoulder, he stopped, red eyes glancing up. "I only want to make you happy."

The pale boy actually smiled. "I know, my dear boy, and you do such a wonderful job of it." The Kaiser turned his head and gestured to his neck. "Now this side, Davis. You can't leave a job half done, now can you?"

"Of course not, Master," Davis agreed, leaning a bit closer so he could gain access to the other side of the Kaiser's neck. This time he started at the bottom, moving upwards, and his hands slid up the Kaiser's back as his lips traveled a similar path. When he reached the top of the Kaiser's neck, he hesitated a moment, but then placed a kiss on the other boy's earlobe, nipping it gently.

"Ah ah ah..." A firm hand caught Davis around the jaw and moved his head back. "I did not give you permission to use your teeth, did I, Davis?" The Kaiser stared firmly into his servant's gaze where another modification could be found. The red glow of Davis' eyes became a real bother, so the Kaiser created a pair of contacts that dulled the red just slightly and allowed some of the brown to show through. "What were my instructions, Davis? Repeat them back to me."

"‘You may kiss my cheek and neck if you like, and you may also use your hands. Modestly,’" Davis repeated. "I'm sorry, Master," he apologized quietly.

"Very well then." The Kaiser pushed up on his toes to kiss Davis at the corner of his mouth. "I feel like a show, Davis. How do you feel about a little trip to the coliseum?"

"If you want a show, Master, I'd like to go too," Davis said, his voice losing its quietness and regaining the smooth monotone in which he normally spoke.

The Kaiser grinned. "Excellent!" He took Davis' hand up into his own as they walked through the halls. "I feel like a cat fight, Davis. Females are such viciously absurd creatures, aren't they? Rosemon and Zephyrmon might be fun to watch. What do you think, Davis? Sound like a good time?"

Even the normally emotionally void slave cracked a pearly white smile that contrasted his dark lips at the Kaiser's idea, his feet shuffling along the cold metal floor as he kept up with the other boy's stride. "Yes, Master. Yes it does."

"You are so adorable when you agree with me," the Kaiser said with a dark purr. They rode the classic Airdramon out to the large stone arena where the Kaiser kept Digimon for fighting. His throne was large and ornate, made of twisted black metal and well cushioned. Davis was allowed a smaller seat made of smooth wood with a pillow to sit on. A loud shriek signaled the start of the fight as Zephyrmon launched from the gate, her clawed hands ready to strike. Rosemon was prepared though, using her thorny whip to catch Zephyrmon around the wrist and sling her into the ground. "They're feisty today."

Davis sat strangely on his chair as he watched, one leg propped up over one arm of the chair while the other tucked underneath him on the pillow, positioned as if he was only half sitting cross-legged. His elbow then rested on the opposite armrest and he placed his chin upon his fist, mostly to stop himself from gaping at the fight as the two went at it, clawing and screeching nonsensically. "Yes they are, Master," Davis agreed in a murmur, as if speaking much louder would scare the Digimon off like small animals, despite them being seated high above where the actual fight was taking place.

The Kaiser chuckled. "I like when they're feisty." The fight managed to last for at least half an hour. Both Digimon seemed to be getting fed up with each other, so real attacks began. Rosemon used her Roses Rapier to tear the other's wings to shreds, forcing her to the ground where she would be at a disadvantage. She attacked again with Forbidden Temptation, aiming to completely annihilate her opponent, but Zephyrmon still had her speed and dodged the blast. It was her turn to summon her Wind of Pain, which sliced Rosemon's petals, leaves, and cape. In fact, she was so weakened that she devolved back into the more petite-sized Lilymon. "Oh ho! What do we have here?" Kaiser laughed, leaning forward in his throne expectantly. "She's nearly got her down for the count."

Davis watched this fight with a quirked brow. He saw Rosemon's cape get torn apart and began to think in a way that he didn't normally. He still spoke in a murmur, suddenly saying, "I wonder what's under Lilymon's dress."

The Kaiser flinched, going completely rigid. He did not just hear that. He turned slowly to look at Davis, the bottom lid of one eye twitching. "Excuse me?" he growled lowly.

Davis lolled his head to the side, making his jaw shift to the other side a bit, a pensive expression on his face sans his blank eyes. "I'm curious. Is it a dress or part of her body?"

Now the Kaiser just look dumbfounded, his face one of total disbelief. "What does it matter, Davis?"

Red-brown eyes glanced over at the Kaiser. "It doesn't matter, really. I just wanna know."

"Well it's a bloody ridiculous question!" the boy shouted. "If you're so damn interested in Digimon pussy all of the sudden, they why don't you go down there and look for yourself!" The Kaiser finished this by kicking Davis out of his chair, sending him tumbling down a few steps. He grumbled angrily as he stood and stormed off into the tunnels. Clearly his appetite for the fight was completely gone.

Davis made a surprised noise when he was kicked out of his chair, and landed at the edge of the balcony, skidding across the stone. He groaned a little as he stood up and at once trotted up the steps to follow after the Kaiser despite his obvious outrage with Davis. He walked into the tunnel after the other boy, walking quickly to try and catch up with him. "I'm sorry, Master," he called ahead.

It was relatively dark in the tunnels, lit only by the torches of blue fire. The Kaiser's figure disappeared into the shadows, appeared in the brief light, and then vanished again as he walked. "Sorry isn't good enough this time, Davis!"

"What should I do to atone for my comment then, Master?" Davis responded instantly.

The Kaiser stopped in his tracks. "My god, Davis! Do you even know what you did wrong?"

Davis scrunched up his brow line, frowning a bit. "I said something that made you angry," he said simply.

"It's more than that, Davis!" the Kaiser shouted, angry all over again. "Don't come home until you figure it out!" And he was off again, stomping down the tunnel until he disappeared completely and even the sound of his heavy boots faded away. He highly doubted Davis would be able to really come up with a sensible reason, but he couldn't be around the other boy right now. Maybe he'd come fetch him in a few days. ...Maybe.

Davis watched the Kaiser go, licking his lips as he frowned. He didn't understand what he'd done wrong, but he loyally didn't budge and simply sat down in the spot where the Kaiser left him, eyes on the stone beneath him as he propped his head up in his hands to think. Hours went by before anything came to get him. Very quiet scuttling noises could be heard drawing closer and closer to the boy. Finally, Wormmon was seen in the blue light of a nearby torch. "I was worried when Ken returned without you," he said and approached Davis.

Davis glanced up and then looked down at the floor again. "Leave me here. I cannot return home until I figure out what I've done wrong."

Wormmon tilted his head slightly. "Are you any closer to figuring it out than you were when he left you here?"

"...No," Davis admitted, shaking his head.

"Would you like my help?" Wormmon offered.

Davis frowned a bit. "Do you think Master would be angry?"

"Did Ken say you couldn't have help?"

Davis scratched at his chin before shaking his head. "No, he did not." He then smiled weakly. "I would like some help then."

Wormmon nodded. "You don't have to tell him I helped you, if you'd rather not." He scuttled closer, propping his front claws on Davis' crossed legs. "Now tell me what happened. Why are you in trouble?"

"I said I wondered what was under Lilymon's dress," Davis answered.

"Hm, I see... And what did Ken say?"

"He said 'Excuse me?’" Davis said next, his voice flat save for a replication of the Kaiser's tone of voice when he quoted him.

Wormmon knew this was going to take a while with Davis' habit of verbatim. "Right, what did he say when he sounded most angry?"

"‘If you're so damn interested in Digimon pussy all of the sudden, they why don't you go down there and look for yourself!’" Davis repeated.

Wormmon made some kind of noise through his pincers as they clicked together. That was quite the bold statement. "I see..." he said again. "Davis, do you understand jealousy?" the worm asked, not sure what the answer would be.

Davis seemed to pout a bit as he tried to recall. Eventually, he shook his head and leaned forward on his knees, looking down at the little Digimon. "No, I don't. Will you explain it to me?"

"Certainly. You like Ken, right? You might even say that you like Ken very much?"

Davis nodded. "Yes, of course. I love my Master."

"Good good. You like being the only one to make him happy, right?"

"Yes, I do," Davis said, nodding.

Wormmon’s antennae twitched. So far so good. "Now, Davis, I want you to imagine what it would be like if another human came along who made Ken happy instead of you. Would that make you feel good or bad?"

Davis was quiet for a moment, seemingly putting the pieces together. "Bad," he finally concluded. "Is that jealousy?"

"Yes, Davis. That is jealousy. Jealousy is when you get upset about someone taking the special attention you use to get from a particular person. So if I told you that Ken got mad because he was jealous, do you understand why?" Wormmon knew this might be harder, but he would work Davis through it. Despite all the horrible things Ken did to the Digital World, he was still the boy's Digimon, and that meant making Ken happy.

"Was he jealous that I was looking at Lilymon?" Davis asked far quicker than Wormmon expected, slapping his palms on the stone floor as he leaned closed to the Digimon, his face seemingly having lit up with an excited expression at this revelation.

"Yes!" Wormmon exclaimed. "You were giving Lilymon some very personal attention that the Kaiser wants you to only give him. You see, Davis, Ken cares about you far more than he is willing to admit. In both a physical and emotional way. Showing interest in what was under Lilymon's skirt is a betrayal of his physical bond with you. According to Ken, if you are going to give attention to anyone's body, it should be his. Do you understand all of this, Davis?"

Davis' mind seemed far off, though. He was grinning, his fingers drumming against the stone floor. "My Master likes me," he said stupidly. One might wonder how he spent four years servicing the other boy without realizing it, but his enslaved personality was still not the brightest crayon in the box, even if the Kaiser instilled some logic in him. Eyes then glanced back at Wormmon. "What should I do now?"

"Well, now you can go home. You should go see Ken, apologize, and tell him that you understand your mistake. Explain to him that you understand his jealousy and apologize for making him feel that way. Can you do this, Davis?"

"I can do that," Davis said with a nod. He pushed himself up into a standing position, looking determined. Suddenly, something else came to his mind, and he looked down at Wormmon. "I think the Digimon who were fighting are still out on the field, if they didn't destroy each other."

Wormmon pat his claw on Davis' ankle. "They've been taken care of. It's late, Davis. We should get you home." Wormmon used a Megadramon to fly himself to the coliseum, which they naturally rode back to the citadel. He led the boy to the Kaiser's bedroom where he ushered Davis inside, giving him a little nudge. "Go on. You can do it." Davis nearly stumbled when he was pushed, but he kept his footing and looked around the room. He'd nearly opened his mouth to speak before he realized it was empty. When he heard the sound of water, he made his way over to the bathroom door. Too many times he simply barged in on the Kaiser while bathing, so he'd now been trained to knock, which he did.

The Kaiser lounged in the tub, a glorious orgy of bubbles floating around him. "Come in."

Davis opened the door, edging into the bathroom and walking over to stand in front of the bathtub, hands folded behind his back. "I realized what I did wrong, Master," he stated.

"So you decided to come crawling back and beg my forgiveness?" the Kaiser asked, lifting one leg up, watching the water trickle down his slender calf before lowering it again. "Well get on with it. Why were you bad, Davis? And you'd better have the right answer."

"I made you jealous," Davis said much more bluntly than he'd been instructed.

Dark indigo eyes landed on the tan teen. "Oh did you? And how's that?"

"Because I was looking at Lilymon," Davis said. "And you want me to look at you."

"So it's my fault?" the Kaiser asked, eyes narrowing.

"It's my fault for wondering about Lilymon," Davis responded. "I'm sorry, Master."

"You're damn right you're sorry." The Kaiser stood, rising up out of the water and stepping out of the tub. His pale body dripped, stray suds slipping down his legs, and his long hair hung straight down his back, some even over the front of his shoulder. "I am your Master, Davis. Your loving, giving, merciful Master. I've given you everything and you would dare cast your eyes on another?" He came slowly down the steps. "You were disloyal, ungrateful, and disgraceful."

Davis bowed his head, looking down at the floor. "I'm sorry, Master," he repeated. After a moment, he got down on one knee, and then the second one hit the tile, and his hands came to rest in front of him as the Kaiser's feet stopped in front of him.

"Do you love me, Davis?"

"Yes, Master," Davis said, nodding his head while keeping his eyes on the floor. "I love you."

"Look at me!"

Davis' red-brown eyes finally looked up at the Kaiser towering over him. "I love you, Master," he repeated.

The Kaiser didn't smile, but one hand reached down cupping Davis' jaw and cheek in his palm. "Good, Davis. Now show your Master how much you love him."

Davis blinked up at the Kaiser for a moment, before he directed his eyes to the part of the boy that his face was held before. Positioned right in front of the Kaiser's hips, he soon leaned closer, tilting his head to the side so his face brushed against the inside of the top of the Kaiser's thigh. "May I, Master?" he asked in a quiet voice.

The Kaiser sighed as his nails scraped along Davis' cheek. "Don't make me repeat myself, Davis," he warned in a deceptively sweet voice. Davis bit his lip a bit. He didn't know his boundaries without any instruction from the Kaiser. But he inhaled deeply and exhaled, his breath brushing against the gradually drying pale skin. He soon leaned into the inside of the Kaiser's thigh and began kissing at one spot he knew was a bit sensitive. The Kaiser made a quiet sound not unlike a gasp. His hand moved into Davis' short cinnamon hair which he gripped firmly, but didn't pull. He tilted his head back, eyes closing, and breathed deeply. "Very good, Davis."

Davis smiled a bit at the praise. His tongue flicked out across the spot, and his teeth nipped at it, taking the flesh into his mouth. He sucked on it gently, and then his tongue teased it again, before running a curving line along the inside of the Kaiser's hipbone, following the line of the other boy's thigh before moving up to his stomach. Davis' hands came to grip the Kaiser's hips as his tongue led across the soft skin, and his tongue soon dipped into the shallowest dip.

"Mmn..." The Kaiser’s fingers gripped a bit harder now. There was a blush on his cheeks and his head turned down to tuck his chin into his chest. Sometimes the Kaiser regretted revealing that pleasure spot to Davis, because sometimes the boy used it to his own mischievous advantage. It just felt so good. This body he stole from a sad boy so long ago. The Kaiser moaned again as that tongue squirmed.

Davis' mouth kept moving, tongue slipping in and out, teeth nipping gently at that pearly skin. Meanwhile, one of his hands slipped from the Kaiser's hip and moved down, soon pressing his fingers into the sensitive skin below the Kaiser's lower belly, kneading gently. His mouth moved away from the Kaiser's skin to say quietly, "I love you, Master," before he moved back in to continue his work.

The Kaiser gasped again, louder. His legs trembled beneath him and suddenly he fell. At first he draped over Davis for support, but soon enough he slipped away to lie upon the tiled floor. Midnight colored hair, still damp, splayed out beneath him. One knee was turned in slightly while the other sort of turned out. Indigo eyes looked at the other boy and swallowed, saying, "You're so cruel, Davis."

Davis' hand touched the Kaiser's kneecap, thumbing it gently as he turned it away so he could crawl between the other boy's legs. He couldn't deny that the other boy's gasps and gripping fingers excited him, but he was more concerned about exciting his Master. "I'm sorry, Master," he apologized quietly, before leaning his mouth down to move his kissing and nipping to the base of the Kaiser's length. This earned him a hiss. Blood gradually pooled where it needed to be, rewarding Davis for his efforts. The Kaiser's hand landed back on Davis' head, gripping and releasing in pattern. Softly the boy began panting, sighing, moaning. He deserved all of this attention. He did! He deserved every second of Davis' time. Nobody else was worthy. Not even close. Davis' eyes glanced up, and he soon realized that the other boy was almost ready. His mouth soon moved again, kissing at the Kaiser's sensitive skin before his tongue was pulled slowly up his Master's length.

"Aahn..." The Kaiser arched, bringing his hips up on reflex to the contact. "So very good, Davis," he groaned. "Make your Master happy."

Davis nodded his head slightly. "Yes, Master," he murmured as his mouth moved to the top of the Kaiser's member. He kissed the tip first, almost teasingly, but soon his lips slipped over the tip and then down the entire length.

The Kaiser groaned long and loud as Davis' mouth moved down his erection. It'd been neglected for weeks, so this passionate attention was quite long overdo. The fingers in short cinnamon hair kept rubbing and scratching in praise, curling and stretching against the scalp. "Ahh... Ahhn... Aaaah!"

Davis gasped inward slightly, eyes glancing up at the Kaiser before they slid shut. He then started moving his mouth up and down, sucking gently at first. But his mouth soon moved a bit more passionately, sucking harder, his tongue starting to work as well and licking up and down the sensitive length as the hot cavern of his mouth slipped up and down, enveloping it again and again at a steady, tortuously pleasurable pace.

"Ohhh, Davis!" He was throbbing in the other boy's mouth, drawing ever closer to his end. The Kaiser thought about letting Davis do this more often, but he supposed then nothing would get done, and that would just be spoiling his servant as well. Sometimes he wasn't sure who enjoyed this more. Perhaps it was all relative. "Good, Davis! Good!" Admittedly he'd been impressed when the boy confessed to his mistake. It was quite the feat for Davis to figure that out on his own. Maybe the gears were finally starting to turn in there. But the Kaiser knew this meant he'd have to keep an eye on things. Too much thought could mean trouble. "Aaah! Ooh-hhhhh!"

"Mm..." Davis' mind reeled with ways he could further please his Master. He went through every sensitive spot he knew like a perfectly remembered checklist. Soon hands gripped slim thighs and squeezed with strong fingers, and he began moaning as his mouth moved, sending vibrations through the other boy's body from his length.

The Kaiser cried out, shaking his head and blushing. His erection was wet and just the slightest bit sticky with the evidence of his mounting excitement. "Prove you love me, Davis," he commanded breathlessly. "Prove it right now! Aah!"

When the Kaiser commanded that, Davis obediently delivered. He swallowed down what was already in his mouth and then pushed his lips all the way down to the base of the Kaiser's length, pushing his Master past his gag reflex and proceeding to deep-throat him. And it seemed that was it. The Kaiser cried out again as he released and his voice died down into a long fading moan. His hand slipped away from Davis' head and fell to the floor. The boy laid there, panting, chest heaving for air. The Kaiser licked his lips, like he was ready to speak, but no words followed.

Davis sputtered at first, but soon swallowed and pulled his lips back, sitting himself upright. He crouched over the Kaiser and tongued at his teeth, trying to remove the strange feeling. He would have spoken, but he could tell that his Master was trying to get something out, so he sat there silently between the Kaiser's legs, waiting.

"You... You have proven your love for your Master, Davis," the Kaiser said quietly. "And you have earned his again. For now."

Davis crawled over the Kaiser's body, smiling down at him. "Was it good, Master?" he asked.

"Yes, Davis." Indigo eyes looked up at the tan-skinned boy. There was still a blush on his cheeks and beads of sweat on his forehead. "It was very, very good."

Davis reached over and gently wiped the sweat from the Kaiser's pale skin, smiling. "I'm glad then, Master," he said quietly.


	2. Pining for Home

"Davis." The voice was soft, but not quite gentle. Just the simple calling of the boy's name. "Davis. Davis, do wake up." The Kaiser was standing at the foot of the bed fixing some fingerless gloves over his hands. He trained Davis to close his eyes at night once bedtime came around. Seeing those red-brown depths open and staring all the time was just too creepy. "Davis, get up now or you don't get your surprise."

Even though the Kaiser taught Davis to close his eyes while he slept, when he awoke, they still snapped open instead of fluttering open like a normal person's. That was still a work in progress. He rubbed at his eyes and sat up, eyes at first fixated on the sheets before glancing upwards. "Good morning, Master."

"Good morning, Davis. Did you enjoy yourself last night?" the Kaiser asked in reference to their escapade on the bathroom floor.

Davis nodded gently. "I enjoy making you happy, Master," he responded.

The Kaiser nodded as well. "I rather enjoyed it, too. You were very good, Davis. You realized your mistake, apologized, and even proved your love to me. I think that earns you a reward." He smoothed his hair back, getting it all into the tight ponytail he wore every day. "Would you like that, Davis?"

"If you will reward me, then yes, I would like it," Davis said, pushing aside the sheets as he spoke, inching towards the foot of the bed to kneel on the mattress in front of where the Kaiser stood.

The Kaiser waved his hand. "Oh please, none of that. Just get dressed, Davis. Wear the dark blue shirt today and the jeans with the holes. I like those ones."

Davis nodded his head and put his feet on the floor off the side of the bed, standing up and heading over to the closet to dress himself. It was strange to see his clothing and the Kaiser's clothing hanging together. There was a time when the Kaiser definitely would not allow anything of that sort. But once the Kaiser started dressing Davis as he liked, like some sort of life sized doll, he allowed most of his clothing to hang at the back of the closet. Davis ducked into the back to retrieve the clothing he was told to and put it on before shuffling back out into the bedroom, buttoning his jeans as he did.

The Kaiser waited patiently for Davis to dress himself. It seemed he was in a particularly good mood today. When the taller teen emerged from the closet, his eyes swept up and down the built body and grinned. "Flex for me, Davis. Just for fun." Davis actually seemed surprised at first. The Kaiser hadn't ever asked that before. But, quickly, he erased the look from his face and lifted one arm, holding his own wrist with the other hand as he pulled his forearm back, flexing his arm muscles. "Oh my..." he sang. The Kaiser sauntered over, taking slow graceful steps, and stopped right in front of his servant. "Look at you, Davis. Growing into quite the handsome gentleman." His fingers touched the firmly flexed muscles and he unconsciously licked his lips. "I must say I'm impressed. Now flex both arms at the same time, and see if you can work some pecs in with it."

Davis nodded obediently, releasing his arm. He moved his arms downwards this time, flexing them out and having the fists bump against each other for resistance. And the harder he pressed, the more his chest muscles became involved. "Like this, Master?" he asked.

"Yes, Davis. That's perfect." The Kaiser's hands moved all over Davis' toned form. He squeezed the muscles in his arms and rubbed his palms firmly over Davis' chest. "I swear you must be built like a horse. And hung like one too!" he finished with a bold laugh. The evil boy sighed when his laughter ended and wiped a tear from his eye. "Well, enough of this then. Let's get going. Your surprise is waiting for you."

The humor seemed to be lost on Davis, but he still smiled to see the Kaiser laughing. "All right, Master," he said, letting his body relax, prepared to follow the Kaiser to whatever he had planned.

They went out to the stables where the Kaiser picked out a pair of Gaogamon for them to ride out into the wilderness. After maybe an hour, they came upon a patch of land that was covered in dirt rather than the barren stone of everything around it. It measured out a few good comfortable acres and was marked off by a set of glowing lines on the ground. "Here we are." The Kaiser dismounted the Digimon and gestured for Davis to do the same.

Davis leapt off his furry beast, coming to stand at the edge of the glowing lines with a confused look on his face. "What's this, Master?" he asked, his tone actually sounding curious as red-brown eyes scanned what he could see of the dirt patch.

"You've been so good lately, Davis, that I decided to give you your own piece of land." Dark indigo eyes looked over at his servant. "You remember our conversation, don't you?"

"Oh... yes, I do," Davis said, a small smile coming over his face. He looked over his shoulder at the Kaiser. "So... this is mine, Master?"

The Kaiser nodded. "Yes, Davis. All the land within this confined space is yours to do with as you wish, along with my approval. I can help you design it if you like." He came to stand beside his servant and stared at him critically. "But first, what do you say?"

"Thank you, Master," Davis said, turning to the Kaiser and bowing his head. "You treat me far better than I deserve."

The Kaiser smiled just slightly. "I do spoil you, yes. But remember, Davis, I can take all of this away as easily as I gave it to you. This land is a privilege, not a right. You must earn its keep. Do you understand, Davis?"

"Yes Master. I understand," Davis said, nodding his head before straightening back up out of his bow. He then looked back out over the acres, a pearly white smile breaking out over his dark lips. "This is exciting, Master," he admitted quietly.

"Well, I am glad to see you so grateful and excited, Davis." He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a small metal device. Pushing one button activated it, a blinking green light signaling its proper function, and the pushing of a second button released a long spike from beneath. The Kaiser then knelt down to push the spike into the dirt. They had to wait a few seconds for all the data to connect, but soon enough a holographic console rose from the device, offering a keypad and screens. "All right, Davis. I believe your first choice was water." The Kaiser hit a key and small 3-D images sprang up from the screen. "You can choose an ocean front with waves. The water will gradually get deeper, but it will stop once it reaches the edge of the lot. You can have a lake. You can have grotto. Or you can have a perpetual waterfall into a swimming hole complete with rock formations."

Davis looked pensive for a moment, before cautiously approaching the holographic console. He looked at his options for a moment, running them over in his head. "May I... incorporate my other choices into it, Master?" he asked in a soft voice. "The buildings and the moon?"

"Of course, Davis." The Kaiser was unusually kind today. He was just in a really good mood. "Would you like to have the moon first?"

"Sure, Master," Davis said with a nod. "And then..." he started quietly, looking out over the dirt patch, "and then a man-made river down the center with buildings on either side... but they're up on a slope... with a bridge across it..." He stopped suddenly, red-brown eyes glancing over at the Kaiser. "Is that okay, Master?"

The Kaiser knew in an instant what Davis was talking about. He figured out at one point that memories would inevitably make their way back into Davis' mind. He saw it happen with Digimon already. When first under the spiral or ring's control, they knew nothing from before that moment, but eventually they returned to familiar kinds, places, and habits. The Kaiser didn't know how long Davis had been thinking about his home back in the real world, but such was the case now. "Yes, Davis, that will be fine." Except he didn't want to give the boy exactly what he wanted. The Kaiser feared that allowing Davis familiar images would inspire independent thought. If Davis remembered too much about his former life, he could gain the will power to fight back.

Pressing a few keys, he set to designing Davis' image. The sky over the lot turned dark and was blanketed in millions of stars and a bright full moon. The river dug down the center of the lot and filled with water, which perpetually flowed despite the barriers. The bank and slope were organic, warmly-packed earth with thick grass growing over top. The bridge was traditional: made of wood with red railings. The houses formed up from the ground. Some were contemporary while others were much more traditional, and all varied in size and shape. "How's that, Davis?" he asked when it was all done.

It wasn't the memory that Davis hoped to see recreated, of course. He looked out over it for a moment, almost looking confused, as if he expected the image in his head. He looked over at the Kaiser briefly, then back at the area before him. But, his subservient nature to the Kaiser won out over his desire to see his thinking spot once more. "Great, Master. Thank you."

The Kaiser could see the sad confusion on Davis' face clear as day, and for a split second, he almost felt guilty for not giving the boy what he really wanted. Damn it. "Davis..." he began hesitantly, "if you want changes made to this later on, to be more of exactly what you want, you will have to earn them. All right?"

Davis glanced over at the Kaiser before nodding his head. "Alright, Master." He then looked back at the land and said, "May I use it now, Master?"

"Of course," he said with a nod. The Kaiser actually took Davis' hand in his own and led him over the line. A brief warp of static indicated their being inside and the finer details that he programmed in could be seen. Stray clouds floated across the night sky. The illusion of hills and pine trees stretched on in the distance. The Kaiser then took Davis over to the edge of the river were there were golden koi, spotted in black and white, swimming in the current.

Davis frowned a bit, sitting on the edge of the bank, even as he still held onto the Kaiser's hand. The trees, the hills, and the fish all brought a strange look to his face. It was as if the unfamiliarity was actually disarming for him. He felt the packed dirt beneath him and knew something was wrong. He inhaled deeply, red-brown eyes looking for something familiar. He soon spotted the reflection of the moon in the dark, rippling water, and his eyes glanced up so all he could see was the night sky. With the moon and the stars reflected in his mahogany eyes, Davis finally mustered a bit of a smile.

"You... aren't happy..." the Kaiser observed softly.

"It isn't like I remember, that's all," Davis said quietly.

"I don't want you to leave me."

Davis glanced up at the Kaiser, looking confused. "I'm never going to leave you, Master," he said, unsure of why that pertained.

The Kaiser sighed, putting his free hand to his forehead. "I'm afraid to give you what you want, Davis. What if I let you have exactly what it is you see in your head, and then you start remembering even more? I'm afraid any land I design for you won't be enough, and you'll crave the real thing, and then one day... You'll leave me again." This was all incredibly hard to say. The Kaiser hated showing any sort of weakness to anybody. Even someone who's mind was enslaved to him. Davis frowned a bit, looking saddened by what the Kaiser said. He looked at the water, and then back up at the Kaiser, before tugging on his hand slightly, asking him without words to sit down. The Kaiser did as Davis wanted, moving to sit beside him at the water's edge. "You must think I'm selfish and mean."

That's when Davis leaned over and placed a gentle peck on the Kaiser's cheek. "I'm never going to leave you, Master," he repeated.

The Kaiser touched his cheek, looking thoughtful. "Davis, if I took the spiral off your arm, would you still stay?"

Davis looked surprised at the question before sticking his bottom lip out slightly. "I hope so, Master," he murmured.

The pale boy just nodded. He didn't speak for a long time. Dark eyes trained on the koi swimming about in the river. There were two that kept circling each other, dancing. He watched as the black spotted koi suddenly broke formation and swam away. The gold koi just swam in place, looking after the other as it left. The Kaiser wondered if it was lonely now. But then, the black koi came back and they began dancing again. The Kaiser thought back to a time when he was very young and still not in control of Ken's body.

His older sibling died, and Ken had a terrible time with it. Mrs. Ichijouji told him, if you love something, set it free. So those dark eyes shifted to look upon the spiral on Davis' arm. Maybe it had been long enough. Maybe Davis would feel true affection even without the device. The Kaiser’s fingers touched the black metal, hesitant, contemplative. Davis had been looking at the moon and the stars, not caring to notice the fish that were too unfamiliar for him. It was only when the other boy touched the spiral that he looked down, over at the Kaiser. He frowned as he watched the Kaiser's face change. Somehow, Davis picked up on what the other was thinking. "I'm sorry if I don't," he said suddenly in a quiet voice.

"Will you hate me if I don't allow you the chance, Davis?"

"Of course not, Master," Davis said, shaking his head. "I want to stay with you."

"Do you want to be rid of the spiral, Davis? Do you want to love me without the spiral?"

Davis was quiet at first. He looked up at the moon, staring at it as its light reflected in his eyes. It seemed like the question froze him up, like such deep questions often did. But after many long moments, he opened his mouth to say, "I would like that, yes, Master." But his eyes quickly glanced over at the Kaiser, light flashing across them. "But it is also the invention that helped me love you. I don't want to lose my love for you, Master. If that means keeping the spiral, then I want it."

The Kaiser listened carefully to these words. He finally had everything he wanted. Taking the spiral off might mean jeopardizing it all. Was he ready to do that? To set Davis free from control, to finally have a companion who could think and talk with him on another level sounded like paradise. But... Davis might also spawn immediate hatred for him and attack. Finally he made a decision. The Kaiser swallowed and touched the spiral, allowing it to unlatch and slip off the tan muscular arm.

The Kaiser held the dark device in his hand, ready to thrust it back on, but he waited. "...Davis?"

Davis blinked, surprised, the red tint suddenly dimming from his eyes, leaving only the mahogany brown hue of normality. He stared at the Kaiser, squinting his eyes a bit. Davis didn't even recognize him. Between his hazy mind and the Kaiser's teenaged features, long hair, and the lack of his signature outfit, he just quirked a brow at him. He then caught sight of the rolling hills and trees behind him and looked around the place: up the hill and at the small houses, over at the bridge, and then at the river. "Okay..." he finally spoke, in a voice full of confusion and a bubbling sarcasm that was just ready to color his tone as he went on to immediately joke, "This isn't the first time I've woken up someplace I totally didn't remember goin' to sleep in."

The boy actually smiled a little. It seemed the same dramatics from four years ago weren't going to happen... or at least not right away. "And when has that happened to you before?" the Kaiser asked, trying to keep the mood calm and casual.

The Kaiser’s voice was also too different to recognize at first. And Davis was so out of sorts that he just went along with the conversation rather than ask questions. "Well this one time, I woke up in the middle of the mall. I didn't even remember falling asleep. And this other time, I woke up on the beach in the middle of winter... no clue why I was down there then. Oh! And once, I woke up in my thinking spot after I fell asleep right in the middle of a thought, but man if I couldn't remember what it was. But I fall asleep there all the time, so I expected it." He looked around a bit more, frowning a little. "This place kinda looks like it. But not really."

The Kaiser smiled even more. He actually really liked hearing Davis talk this way. The cruel, unfeeling Kaiser actually missed the sound of Davis prattling about nonsense. "Those are some weird places to wake up. I don't think I've ever had that experience. You never told me you had a thinking spot, Davis. What kind of stuff do you think about?"

"Oh, tons of stuff," Davis said, suddenly flashing the other boy a huge grin. "Soccer plays a lot of the time, y'know? 'Cause if I don't think of 'em, no one will. And like, sometimes I think about stuff I gotta get. Or I wanna get... I'd always think that I wanted a soda and then not wanna get up to go get one at the store. So I'd go home without it." He laughed then, seemingly finding his own absent-mindedness amusing. "And sometimes I'd think about stuff that was happening, like, at school or with my... friends..." he trailed off a bit, shrugging his shoulders back, "or in the Digital World."

"The Digital World?" he asked, feigning curiosity. "That sounds fascinating, Davis. Tell me more about the Digital World." The Kaiser drew his knees up, resting one elbow on them and putting his cheek in that hand.

"Man, it's awesome," Davis said with a sigh, leaning back on his free hand. He didn't even seem to realize that he was still gripping the Kaiser's in the other. "Everything's made of data, right? It's all code and stuff and... well, I don't understand it really well. I'm no good with computers." He still grinned though. "And there's these things there called Digimon. And they're like, also made of data, but they're alive and they talk. And everyone's got one." He suddenly abandoned his shoes and socks by pulling them off only with the other foot, kicking them aside before letting his feet dip into the river before them. "I have one, y'know. His name's Veemon, and he's probably the best Digimon ever. He's smart and he's fast and he's always a step ahead of all the other Digimon. But maybe that's because he's teamed up with me," he said with a proud chuckle.

"It sounds like a great place to be. You're really attached to your Digimon. I can tell. I'm sure you two make a great team." The Kaiser set the spiral to the side, hidden from Davis' view. "So, tell me, Davis. If something... bad... happened to Veemon, what would you do?"

"I dunno," Davis said, frowning a bit. "I'd be really lost without Veemon. He's my best friend. He's probably the only living thing I can trust to not judge me, y'know? He's not like anything else. He doesn't have a reason to be petty or hold a grudge or laugh at me behind my back. I don't know how I got through most of my life without him."

"Hmn..." The Kaiser nodded. "Davis, I need to be honest with you. Veemon hasn't been around for a long time. In fact, you and I have been the only friend the other has for... almost four years now. Veemon just wasn't strong enough to survive."

Davis looked at the other boy critically for a moment, but soon enough began to laugh. "That's a good try, man, but I haven't even known Veemon four years. And besides, I just saw him yesterday."

"Davis... I want to show you something. May I?"

"Well uh, sure, I guess."

The Kaiser nodded. He tucked the spiral away for safe keeping before standing, pulling Davis up with him. "You'll be confused at first, but I promise everything will make sense soon." He led the other boy outside the barrier, another wave of static revealing the desolate wasteland the Digital World now was. Instead of allowing Davis to ride the second Gaogamon, the Kaiser had them ride the same one back to his citadel. He didn't think the teen would recognize the place, especially since he redesigned it once or twice. Once inside, he led Davis to a room sporting one long glass case which held the eleven Chosen eggs. The case sat in front of an equally long window. The entire display was a testament to the Kaiser's victory. "Do you recognize any of these, Davis?"

Davis seemed confused the whole way there. Why had he fallen asleep in the middle of a desert? What kind of Digimon were they riding? He'd never seen it before. What was this huge building? It struck some sort of dormant memory, but he couldn't put his finger on it. And finally, the eggs in the case had him quirk a brow as well. He'd never seen any of the Digimon in their egg forms before. "No, why?"

The Kaiser nodded toward the case. "Look at the one in the center there."

Davis knelt down in front of the case and frowned at the eggs. In front of him, in the middle, was a blue and white egg. He put his hand on the glass and his brown eyes widened a little. "You're pulling my leg," he concluded shakily.

"Don't be sad, Davis," the Kaiser said softly. "He's safe where he is now." He came up behind Davis and wrapped his arms around the boy, resting his chin on a strong shoulder. "But look out there, Davis. Isn't it wonderful?" Dark eyes looked out the window at the stone and sand landscape. "We made it together. You and me, Davis."

"What?" Davis asked, trying to wriggle free of the Kaiser's arms. "I didn't have anything to do with... anything! What are you talking about?"

"Of course you helped," he chirped. "You were by my side the whole way. Clearly I couldn’t allow you to fight since your friends might have taken you away from me, but you were always there for me. You were so supportive, though. I couldn't have created this paradise without you." The Kaiser leaned in to kiss Davis on the cheek. "Now we can enjoy it together."

Davis put his hand up and blocked the kiss before it could reach him. He then forced the Kaiser's face away, his own face one of confused disgust. He didn't understand what was going on. But slowly, the pieces of the puzzle seemed to assemble in his mind until, "Kaiser!" he gasped, eyes going wide.

The Kaiser allowed himself to be pushed away, if only to keep tensions down. "Now, Davis, don't get too upset. Everything isn't so bad. You and I have been very happy the last few years. We can stay that way, Davis. You and I can stay happy in this world we made. You loved it before. You can learn to love it again."

"Years?" Davis repeated, starting to breathe quickly. "Are you out of your mind?!" Davis shouted, suddenly bolting to his feet and stumbling away from the Kaiser. "My parents probably think I'm dead or something..." he breathed, running his hands up into his hair. "How could you keep me here this long?"

"It wasn't so bad. You parents still had the girl, right? Your sister? I'm sure she was a good child for them. You were needed here." The Kaiser smiled sweetly. "Sure, at first I wanted to punish you, torture you for all the humiliation you put me through, but things changed after a while. You obeyed me so well and loved me so faithfully. Even I grew to love you, Davis. None of that has to change. You love it here. You eat well, you bathe in luxury, you even sleep with me. I gave you that land because you're so well behaved. I can give you more wonderful things, Davis."

Davis bit his lip so hard that it started bleeding a little. He breathed hard and looked down, meaning to catch sight of his feet, but instantly becoming aware of something else. He saw his elbow first, hand still in his hair, and something didn't seem right. His skin was darker, and his arm was thicker. He let go of his hair to look at his arm, and gasped when he saw the scars that marred the upper side. He soon pulled up his pant leg and his shirt, finding all sorts of marks and bruises. Some of them weren't physical, but sexual. It made him feel sick. "But you did this too me too, didn't you?!" he accused, balling his hand up into a fist.

"You always liked it," the Kaiser insisted. "You said so yourself."

"I haven't said anything!" Davis argued coldly. "The last thing I even remember was being twelve and going to sleep in my bed." He looked around the metal walls of the citadel and backed up a few more paces, now both hands in fists. "There better still be a way for me to get home."

The Kaiser followed in step, reaching out. "Davis, don't do this." He smiled again, warm but hardly comforting. "Just give it all a try."

When the Kaiser stepped forward, Davis took two steps back. "How do I get home?" he repeated, louder this time.

The boy just shook his head. "I'm very disappointed in you, Davis." The Kaiser moved forward quickly, faster than he seemed capable of, and grabbed Davis' arm. He pulled the spiral out and shoved it back onto the boy's arm. He watched as Davis struggled mentally. It didn't take long. When red-brown eyes blinked at him, the Kaiser just smiled sadly. "I'm afraid it didn't work, Davis."

"Oh," Davis said in his once more monotone voice, casting his eyes downward to the floor. "I'm sorry, master."

"It's not your fault." The Kaiser sighed. "Give your master a kiss, Davis. It will cheer me up."

"Yes, master," Davis said, lifting his hands to gently cup the Kaiser's face. The guilt was obvious in his expression, but he washed it away to close his eyes and kiss the Kaiser's lips.

The Kaiser accepted the kiss, even giving back a bit. When he pulled away he was smiling. "At least you didn't run away. You're still here. That makes me happy."


	3. Thinking Place

The Kaiser was quiet for a while, just standing in that room with Davis. Indigo eyes looked up to meet mahogany. "Was that Flymon ever caught?"

Davis nodded his head, one thumb moving across the side of the Kaiser's cheek. "Yes, master. It's down in the cells now."

"Excellent. I want it brought downstairs. Make sure its legs are shackled." The Kaiser moved some stray hairs behind his ear, standing up straight, composing himself. "I have some attitude adjustments to make."

"Yes, master," Davis said, removing his hands and stepping back before he bowed his head and then proceeded to go downstairs to fetch the Flymon.

The Kaiser went up to his room to change. When he joined Davis, they were in the same grand torture room in which Davis was first violated four years ago. Heavy boots hit the floor. Leather pants, a tight leather shirt, and leather gloves, all squeaking slightly against his skin. The thick leather whip hung from his hip. Midnight blue hair was pulled back even tighter than usual, done up in a low bun, like a naughty secretary. "Is everything in order, Davis?"

Davis stood off to the side of the room, like Wormmon once had. His hands were folded behind his back and his legs spread just slightly, head up. When the Kaiser entered the room, red-brown eyes glanced over him quickly before he said, "Yes, master."

"Excellent." The Kaiser approached the Flymon that was chained down. It was still resistant despite the ring on its neck. "You can't watch where you're flying?" The Digimon didn't respond, probably couldn't, and just buzzed loudly. "There's no way you couldn't have seen me. Not with how low you were. And there's no way you don't know who I am. If you don't, for some impossible reason, then I guess you need to be taught." The Kaiser released the whip, drew it back, and unleashed his fury on the giant insect.

Davis just watched with passive eyes. He licked his lips slightly, and as he watched the Flymon being whipped, one of his feet began shuffling. And then he unclasped his hand to touch at the spiral on his arm, shifting to his other foot as he inhaled slightly.

"You stupid insect!" the Kaiser growled. "I realize your brain is probably the size of a walnut, but you still have one! Use it!" The Flymon screeched and thrashed against the chains. Its fur began coming off in tufts as the whip struck again and again. Still the Kaiser did not let up. He would teach it the ultimate lesson. Soon the Digimon was too weak to struggle and it sank to the floor where it cried out in pain. The whip lashed out, tearing its wings and marring its body. The Kaiser just kept shouting in a rage, sweat dripping from his face, his whipping arm flexed enough to show the slight muscle tone under pale flesh.

_Insect_... The word had an air of familiarity about it that Davis just couldn't quite place. He continued watching, shuffling his foot and touching the spiral with the tips of his fingers. And after a while of watching and listening to the Flymon cry out in pain, Davis actually began flinching when the hits landed.

Eventually, after a long and painful wait, the Flymon died. With one last strike of the whip, it scattered into pixels, which fell to the floor to gather back into a DigiEgg. "Have that taken to the hatchery," he ordered to a Gazimon who'd been standing by having helped Davis chain the Flymon down in the first place. The Kaiser walked over to Davis, breathing heavily while trying to brush back the hairs that fell loose. "What's the matter with you?" he asked, giving the boy a strange look.

"N-nothing, master," Davis said, shaking his head and letting go of the spiral, crossing his hands behind his back again. "I just... recognized a word you said, that's all."

"Oh?" One dark eyebrow raised. "And what would that be?"

"Insect."

"And how did that word make you feel?"

Davis swallowed a bit and shook his head. "Not good, master."

The Kaiser pulled his gloves off and threw them in Davis' face. "Tch. Pathetic." He then turned and began walking away. Davis seemed confused, catching the gloves as they fell from his face into his hands. He stared at them for a moment before he turned to trot after the Kaiser. "That which breaks us only makes us stronger, Davis," he said as he walked. "Instead of being weak with whatever memory you have, use it to make yourself better."

"I'm sorry, master," Davis apologized as he continued to follow. "I just... think I remember you saying it to me, that's all. I'll forget about it soon, master."

"Your memory is good." The Kaiser didn't bother looking back as he spoke. "I did call you that. Quite a few times, actually. That's all you were to me at the beginning. I had a lot of hatred for you back then. You were still the enemy. If it helps, I would not call you that these days."

Davis was quiet for a moment, but soon nodded and smiled. "Alright. Thank you, master," he said.

"Was the word the only thing that bothered you, Davis?"

"I don't know..." Davis said with a frown, following the Kaiser a bit closer. "The spiral feels a bit funny, master. It gives me a heavy feeling in my chest."

"Oh?" Dark eyes looked over his shoulder this time. "Has that happened before?"

"Not that I can remember..." Davis said, loosely grasping at the fabric of his shirt.

"Is it a physical pain? Like it's hurting you?"

"It hurts, but I am sure nothing is damaged, master," Davis responded, frowning as he looked down the front of his shirt. "There is no gash or puncture wound. It's from inside."

The Kaiser finally stopped and turned to face Davis. "Does it feel like a heart attack?" He wasn't sure if it could be something that bad. The spiral on Davis was strong and could have physical affects on the boy. It was a real possibility, so he needed to check this out. Slender fingers touched Davis' neck, feeling for the pulse.

"I don't know, master," Davis responded. Everything about him seemed normal, and nothing more was happening. "It's nothing to worry yourself over, master. It's just an ache."

"If you're sure." The Kaiser pulled his hand back. Those dark eyes kept watching Davis for a few more seconds before he turned around and resumed his steady pace. "I have some work to do, Davis. You'll have to entertain your self for a while."

"...Can I go to my thinking place, master?" Davis asked quietly.

"Of course. I created it so you could there whenever you got bored or wanted to be alone."

"Thank you, master," Davis said, bowing his head before he looked around for the proper direction to go. Finally finding the correct hallway, he took his own path, still clutching oddly at the front of his shirt. The Kaiser watched Davis go. He found the physical behavior a bit odd, but just shrugged it off in the end.

Wormmon had been going on about his daily wanderings when he heard only one set of footsteps coming down the hall. He was surprised to see the enslaved boy wandering alone. Davis was never alone. There used to be a time when Wormmon was always at Ken's side, but he became more independent over the years. He still loved his boy dearly, but he learned where he stood. He was struck with the mild temptation to seek Ken out, but Davis was better, less violent company. So that's who he followed. Davis kept walking, heading down to the stables. He went over to the Gaogomon he rode to the acres of land the last time and began preparing to leave, when he only then noticed Wormmon following him. He turned around, red-brown eyes looking curiously down at the Digimon. Still, Davis simply greeted him, saying, "Hello, Wormmon."

"Hello, Davis. Where are you off to? It's a bit late to be going out."

"I'm going to my thinking place. Master gave me a few acres and turned it into my thinking place for me," Davis explained.

"Well that was certainly a kind gesture on Ken's part." Wormmon looked at the Gaogomon and then back at Davis. "Could I ask permission to accompany you?"

"Sure," Davis said, smiling. He offered his arms to pick Wormmon up, and actually placed the little green Digimon on his shoulder as he hopped up onto the Gaogomon. And soon enough, they were riding over the sandy landscape towards the generated sloping valley that the Kaiser created for Davis.

Wormmon held onto Davis' shoulder as they rode. He remembered when he used to hang on Ken's shoulder. Those were happier days. Once through the static barrier, the little worm looked around the place with interest and admiration. "You have a lovely imagination, Davis. I can see why you like thinking here."

"I didn't imagine it. I remembered it," Davis explained, as he at once found a seat by the edge of the river. "But... master made it for me and it isn't exactly like the place I remember thinking. I need to earn any changes I want to make."

"I see..." Wormmon scurried up to sit beside Davis. "Ken is very kind to you, though, isn't he?"

"Yes, master is great to me," Davis said, only to sigh and place his head in his hand. "I wish I was the same way."

"I believe you're selling yourself short, Davis. I don't think Ken would reward you so handsomely if you weren't so good to him," Wormmon insisted.

"But..." Davis looked over at the Digimon with a frown. "Master took off my spiral today and I tried to run away from him."

Wormmon's pincers clicked together nervously. "Your mind is different when you have the spiral on, Davis."

"Why?" Davis asked, frowning. "Why do I love master with it, but I can't without it? I think it makes him sad that I can't."

"The spiral inspires devotion in you," Wormmon explained. This kind of information was dangerous to divulge, but he didn't care. It was another chance to maybe set everything right. "It's basically mind control, Davis."

"Mind control?" Davis asked, putting a hand on his head. Red-brown eyes glanced at the river, and then up at the forced night sky. "Isn't this the way I'm supposed to be?"

Wormmon shook his head. "No. This isn't the real you at all, Davis. Everything you feel for the Ken isn't real. All those thoughts and feelings have been implanted by the spiral. Why do you suppose all the Digimon now obey Ken's every word? The dark spiral is an evil device Ken created to make everyone love him."

"An evil device..." Davis murmured, his hand coming again to grip at the spiral. "So... it's not real? None of it?" he asked Wormmon, sounding crestfallen.

Green antenna drooped. "Ken's love for you is real, but I'm afraid your love for him is not." Wormmon rested his claws on Davis' leg. "The original purpose of the spiral was to keep you submissive while Ken tortured you. If you didn't run or fight back, he could do anything he wanted to you."

Davis frowned at Wormmon, picked him up in his hands, and placed the Digimon in his lap. Davis gained an affection for the little green Digimon, especially with the loss of Chibimon's company. He actually even began scratching behind the drooped antenna. "I see..." he said quietly, breathing a long, outward sigh as he looked at the water lazily running by. "What am I really like, Wormmon?"

"You are very energetic, Davis. You are full of hope and life and joy. You're very determined to always do the right thing, and you fight tooth and nail to make sure there is justice. You like to make jokes and be with your friends. You like to show off, which sometimes gets you in trouble, but you like the attention." Wormmon settled comfortably in Davis' lap. "You used to play soccer, before Ken got to you. You were team captain and one of the best players. You could run faster than anyone. You had a great sense of humor and liked making other people smile. You were a great friend, Davis. The other children were devastated to lose you."

Davis frowned as he stroked his hand down the Digimon's green skin. "I'm not like that at all now," he observed. He looked around the spot where they sat, something like his memory but still not quite the same. "Wormmon, is there any way for me to get home?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, Davis," Wormmon warbled sadly. "All the gates have been destroyed. Not even Ken can go home now."

Davis looked pensive, his red-brown eyes filled with thought. Again he glanced at the moon as he continued running his fingers down the ridges along Wormmon's back. Normally, when told something in his enslaved state, Davis would accept it and move on. But after a few quiet moments, he said, "There has to be a way."

"Ken won't like it," Wormmon warned.

"I... I realize that, Wormmon," Davis said quietly. "I just... I don't know. Something's wrong," he said, unable to put into words exactly how he was feeling.

Wormmon turned slightly to look up at the boy. "Something's wrong? Like what?"

"I feel like something is missing, but I don't know what. I think something happened when master removed the spiral." Davis touched the dark metal again. "The person who I really am has been sleeping for so long, but once it came off, he woke up and now he's awake inside me, so I feel like something's wrong... Does that make sense, Wormmon?"

The little green Digimon nodded. "You feel like your life isn't what it's supposed to be."

"Yes, I guess that's it," Davis said, nodding. "And I think I'm worried, too."

Wormmon touched his claws to Davis' arm. He was starting to find hope in all of this. "Why are you worried, Davis? You can tell me. Just take your time. What has you worried?"

Davis seemed a little floored at first, biting his lip and fingering the spiral with one hand. But Wormmon's prompting questions finally dragged an answer out of him. "My family," he finally responded, almost breathlessly, as if the realization surprised him. "And... my... my friends. Because they're probably also worried about me..."

"That's good, Davis," Wormmon said calmly, supportive. "Keep those thoughts with you. The memory of your friends and family are what are going to get you out of here. Maybe this will help, too. Wait here." Wormmon scurried outside the barrier, adjusted the console to his own height, and changed the settings of the little world inside. When he went back in, all the organic components were gone and replaced by the tiled stone, stretch of cityscape, and tall buildings of Odaiba. "This is it, isn't it, Davis?"

"Yes... yes it is," Davis breathed, looking up at the tall buildings and managing a grin. He recognized it. He really recognized the place he was seeing. Nothing about it was foreign like the last image. He looked over his shoulder as the green Digimon approached. "Thank you, Wormmon."

Wormmon smiled in his own way and bent his head. "You're welcome, Davis. You deserve it. You really do."

"I think I can think this all out now," Davis said with a smile. Davis gestured back to his lap, offering Wormmon a place to curl up comfortably while Davis drifted off into thought, looking out across the man-made harbor. Wormmon just nodded again and went to curl up in Davis' lap. Davis had a warm lap, for sure, but it wasn't the same. Ken's lap felt safe, comfortable, like home. Wormmon wanted nothing more than for his boy to hold him again, like he used to. Maybe now he and Davis could escape to this place together, and he would teach the teen about what Ken used to be like. Maybe together, they might stand a chance at setting everything right again.


	4. Chibomon

Time passed and Davis seemed to change over that length of time. He slowly became more independent, seeing things that reminded him of home or sparked him recalling more and more memories. The spiral kept him submissive and loyal to the Kaiser, but the gears were definitely turning inside his head. He often went to his thinking place and usually invited Wormmon along, and they'd talk about tons of different things or just sit in comfortable silence, staring at the water or the moon, or its broken reflection on the glassy surface. Whenever Davis came back from thinking, he always brought with him a new memory he recalled or new thoughts about whatever had been their topic of discussion for the night. Tonight, he returned to an empty bedroom, edging his way inside and going to discard his clothing into the bottom of the closet and then climb into his side of the bed.

"Did you think I wouldn't figure it out?" A voice spoke through the darkness of the room. Apparently, it wasn't as empty as Davis thought. The Kaiser was an observant man. He noticed all those little changes in his slave: the way Davis seemed to be thinking more, staring off, or not participating in a conversation. This new terrible behavior needed to be rectified. "Do you think I'm stupid, Davis?"

"Nope, I don't think you're stupid, master," Davis responded in a light tone that was also new as he sat on top of the sheets, playing with his thumbs as he glanced around the room, trying to locate the other boy.

There came the heavy sound of clunking boots, but he still had yet to appear out of the shadows. "What were my instructions in regards to your plot of land, Davis?"

"I didn't touch the console, master," Davis said, putting his hand on his chest. It was the truth, technically.

"Those were not my instructions!" A loud crack and the whip struck from the shadows, lashing at Davis' right arm. "What were my instructions, Davis? Prove to me there was no miscommunication and that you aren't as dim as I think you are."

"Agh!" Davis cried out, at once gripping the skin the whip hit. "Th-that I'd have to earn any changes I wanted to make."

"So you _did_ hear me when I said that. You see, I was starting to think that maybe you had shit in your ears that day. You didn't have shit in your ears, did you, Davis?"

"No, master, I didn't," Davis responded with a frown.

"So then why, Davis, have there been changes made to your land? I was quite clear, wasn't I? You told me you understood! You told me you would earn those changes with good behavior!" The whip struck again and hit Davis' left arm. "You were so thankful. What happened to all that gratitude, Davis? Maybe I'm spoiling you. Is that it? Have I spoiled you, Davis? And now you don't know the worth of a fair reward? Answer me!"

Davis hissed in pain again, shutting his eyes against the whip. "I-I don't know, master..."

"Well then maybe I should answer for you." Finally, the Kaiser emerged from the shadows. He dressed all in black from head to toe. Only his face could be seen. The rest was tight, menacing leather. Again his hair was pulled back tight, almost painfully so. And his eyes... Dark indigo eyes were wild with rage and loathing. "You are an ungrateful, spoiled brat!" he shouted and whipped Davis across the chest. "You knew good and well what my expectations were, and yet you went behind my back anyway and disobeyed my rules! You were bad, Davis! You were very bad!" Again, he whipped the tan flesh. Davis cried out in pain, scrambling back on the mattress and pressing his back against the headboard. He grit his teeth, but didn't answer, just sort of stared back at the Kaiser, tears stinging at his eyes. "Don't you have something to say?" the Kaiser growled darkly.

"I want to go home."

The Kaiser just stared at Davis in silence. Soon he started to shake, eyes widening, and his face turned red slightly. _"You what?!"_ he screeched.

"I want to go home, _master_," Davis repeated.

"No! No, no, no, no, no!" The boy was shaking his head violently. "You _are_ home, Davis!"

"I want to go home..." Davis said a third time, sounding tired and sad and all sorts of other things that would normally never seep into his voice. "I want to go home..."

"Stop it!" The Kaiser was suddenly on the bed. He grabbed Davis by the shoulders and shook him. "Stop saying that! You're already home! This is your home! I am your family! Stop saying such foolish, terrible things!"

Davis let himself be tossed back and forth, only to straighten up again and have tears streaking his cheeks. "If that's true..." Davis murmured, "why do you control my mind, master?"

"Because you won't love me if I don't!" he answered, voice cracking.

"Are you happy with that, master?" Davis asked. "Are you happy to have my love, even when it's not real? I'm not happy that I don't really love you."

"It's better than you hating me." Tears started to threaten his own eyes. "Here... Here, we'll make it real..." The Kaiser pulled off his gloves and boots, hands shaking the whole time, and cast them aside. Next, he pulled off his shirt and then let down his hair. "See? See how vulnerable I become for you? This is real, isn't it?" He drew himself up against the other boy. "We can still make it work, Davis."

Davis looked like he was going to say something else, but he lost his breath when the Kaiser pulled them close together. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to stop the tears so he could speak to the other boy properly, but he soon realized his contacts slipped from his eyes. He wiped them away, and when his eyes opened again, the harsh, glowing red was back. "Is it real, master?" he asked in a whisper.

The Kaiser was shaking again. "Why are you doing this?!" he screamed and slapped Davis across the face. "Why do you have to ruin everything?! You're supposed to love me! Love me, Davis! Damn it! I want you to fucking love me!"

"I do love you, master," Davis said, touching the spot that was now turning red with a vicious hand print. "But I want to be real."

"Fine! You want it to be real?" The Kaiser gripped the spiral. His nails dug into tan flesh and left thin bloody trails behind as he ripped off the device. The dark spiral flung across the room where it hit the wall and broke into pieces. "There! There, are you happy now? How does being real feel now, Davis?!" The pale boy sobbed. It was so useless.

Davis blinked in confusion, the red glow dying in his eyes and leaving behind his brown ones. He was silent for a moment, gathering his bearings, before he realized who was sitting in front of him and gasped. But, instead of pushing the Kaiser off and running away, he found a question on his lips that he didn't expect. "Why're you crying?"

"Because now you hate me and you're going to leave me!" the Kaiser answered, scrubbing fruitlessly at his eyes with the back of his hands.

Davis looked surprised, knitting his eyebrows together in confusion. "Why do you care?"

"Because you're all I have!" Dark eyes swimming in tears looked up at Davis. "I wanted you to l-love me..."

"Is... is that why you did all of this?" Davis asked, gesturing to the mark on his arm that the spiral left.

The Kaiser shook his head weakly. "It wasn't at first, but then... then you started saying such wonderful things to me, Davis. You were giving me attention no one else would in the real world. No matter how cruel or crazy I got, you were there. You held me and kissed me and told me you loved me. You wanted only to make me happy. And I... I loved you too." He choked on a soft sob. "Something happened, though, after I took the spiral off that first time. Something must have clicked in your brain and you started to remember things. Your desire to be real... was suddenly greater than your desire to love me."

Davis put a hand on his head. Now that was something he wasn't expecting. He'd seen the scars and cuts adoring his body and assumed he spent four years only being abused and tortured for the Kaiser's sick amusement. He never guessed that it was something as deep and needy as this. Suddenly, his hate for the Kaiser's evil, his disgust with his actions, and his worry over how long he'd been kept captive were all overridden by his true nature: caring. He put a hand on the Kaiser's shoulder hesitantly, starting to rub his back as the other boy sobbed. "Sorry," he said simply.

"You should be," the Kaiser said through soft crying. "You made me soft, Davis. You made me care enough about you to set you free. It's horrible. Especially since you'll want to leave now."

"Well, I do want to go home..." Davis said, "but I don't want to leave you here like this, either."

"Tch, don't pretend you care." The Kaiser pushed away from Davis at that point. He got off the bed, legs feeling weak beneath him, and started out of the room. He gestured for Davis to follow with a wave of his hand.

Davis was hesitant at first, but soon got to his feet and trotted after the other boy after throwing his clothes back on. "Hey, just because I don't like what you did doesn't mean I like seeing anyone cry because of me," he protested as he gained on his stride.

"Oh, right, _now_ you feel guilty. Spare me. Your pity sickens me." The Kaiser led Davis to a small room with what appeared to be a tall mirror on the wall. He walked up to the console embedded in a podium and pressed some keys. Where there once was a dull reflection of them, the glass flickered with an image. Eventually, Davis saw the streets of Odaiba, full of people out walking on a sunny summer day. "There..." He gestured to the mirror. "It's the only gate back home. I programmed it myself. Just step through and you'll come out of the wall in an alley. No one will see you and you can just walk onto the street like any other one of those worthless gnats." The Kaiser didn't look at Davis as he spoke. He kept his head turned down and away, his long hair hiding his eyes as it draped over his body in thick strands. All he did was wait for the pop of static so he could close the gate and be all alone once more.

Davis looked into the gate, seeming pretty awed as it began functioning. He leaned close to it, but then leaned back on his heels. "Why'd you program a gate back?"

"In case I ever got bored with this world," the Kaiser answered truthfully. "Or in case this world ever started to break down and I needed a way out."

"Uh-huh..." Davis said, frowning. "I know it's been a really long time, but you could still set everything right."

"I haven't done anything wrong."

"If you did everything right, you'd be happy with your work." Davis glanced at the window that was sitting outside in the hallway. "But you're not really, are you?"

Dark eyes followed that gaze to the window. "I'm very pleased with my work," the Kaiser insisted. "What makes me unhappy is not having anyone to share it with."

"Everyone would want to share it with you if you weren't trying to destroy and kill everything," Davis pointed out.

"I haven't done that!" the Kaiser suddenly snapped. "I won the game! I collected all the pawns and made them mine! I beat the other players! I did what I was supposed to do!"

"You killed everyone's Digimon, kidnapped me, and made the Digital World a wasteland," Davis countered with a frown. "That doesn't sound like a win at all."

"Sh-Shut up!" Fresh tears fell over the Kaiser’s cheeks and he thrust a finger at the gate. "Why don't you just g-go! It's what you wa-wanted. So... So go...!"

"I need my parting gift," Davis said. "Can't leave without the DigiEggs."

"No! They're... They're mine!" the boy argued. "I won them fair and square!"

"They're ours," Davis said, shaking his head. "You stole them."

"You _lost_ them!"

Davis crossed his arms, shrugging his shoulders. "You can give them back or I can take them back. I'm not going back without them."

"Damn it, Davis!" The Kaiser stomped his foot. "Stop being so damn difficult all the time!"

"But then I wouldn't be me," Davis said, putting his hand on his chest. "What, don't like the real me?"

"Fine! You... You want your stupid egg back so badly? Then come get it!" The Kaiser bolted from the room, racing down the halls so he could beat Davis to the trophy room. Once there, he opened the glass case, grabbed the prized blue and white egg, and raised it high over his head… ready to smash it into the ground, destroying the process of rebirth for the Digimon inside.

Davis gasped and ran after him, getting to the room a few seconds after the Kaiser did. He stood frozen in the doorway for a second before gritting his teeth and suddenly rushing forward, smashing his foot into the Kaiser's shin in the same sliding tackle as the one he used against him in soccer all of those years ago. And when the Kaiser dropped the egg, Davis was lying on the ground to grab it before it hit his chest.

But he wasn't going to be bested so easily. The Kaiser dove on top of Davis, catching the egg instead, and then rolled off the boy. He ran to the other side of the room where he glared at his rival. Just as he was about to spit some vial words of hatred, the DigiEgg in his hands started glowing. Even after all these years, the Digimon inside still knew Davis' presence, and its desire to be with its human was undeniably strong. The Kaiser yelped when it hatched, leaving a tiny blue blob with a head tail in his hands. "What the hell?" Only he was cut off by a flurry of bubbles in his face. "Augh! You horrible little cretin!" he shouted and chucked the baby across the room.

"Chibomon!" Davis gasped, scrambling to his feet to again dive and catch the little blue Digimon in his hands.

The tiny Digimon squeezed its eyes shut, ready to hit the wall or floor, but instead he was wrapped in a pair of strong, warm hands. When his eyes blinked open, he immediately recognized the teenager holding him. "Davis!" he squeaked happily as his head tail wiggled. "You finally came for me!" Tiny tears formed in its little pink and black eyes. "I knew... I knew you would come for me some day."

Davis smiled widely, bringing the Digimon to his face to press his cheek against him fondly. "I'm sorry I took so long, Chibomon. I missed you." He then looked over his shoulder and glared daggers at the Kaiser. "What's your problem?! He's a baby! Last I checked, you don't throw babies!"

"It sprayed acid bubbles in my eyes!" the Kaiser sneered.

"'Cause you scared him," Davis said with a frown, standing up with Chibomon cradled in his hands.

"Digimon Kaiser!" Chibomon chirped bravely, like it was ready to fight right then and there.

"You watch your mouth, you little whelp. I can turn you back into an egg faster than you can blink!"

"Not as long as I'm here," Davis responded, putting one hand over Chibomon protectively. "Now just gimmie the rest and I'll leave."

"Fat chance." The Kaiser moved back to the case, pressed a few buttons, and the glass reformed around the eggs. "You have yours. That's all you need."

"I'm not going back to my friends without their Digimon, too," Davis said, gritting his teeth.

"Like they're even your friends anymore!" the pale boy spat.

Davis eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "Wh... what?"

"You were their fearless leader, right? You were the one they could always count on, but you disappeared. You vanished without a trace, leaving them all alone. Without you they fell apart. You let them down, Davis. You failed them. What makes you think they'll take you back now? Hell, they've probably forgotten all about you anyway. It's the only way for them to sooth the pain of betrayal and disappointment. If you went back now, they'd crucify you."

Davis looked taken aback, his jaw agape like a fish gasping for a breath. He soon shook his head violently, looking determined as he said, "They wouldn't do that! It's not my fault I left. It's yours!"

"How do they know that?" the Kaiser asked and crossed his arms. "For all they know, you chickened out and ran away. Now that the coast is clear, it's the perfect chance for you to go crawling back with your tail between your legs."

"Davis isn't a coward!" Chibomon squeaked from between the boy's hands.

"Tch. Good luck getting them to believe that."

"Where could I have been hiding?" Davis argued. "I wasn't in the real world, that's for sure. Are you implying they'd think I lived here without you noticing me all this time?"

"I think you're over estimating the power of loyalty and friendship."

"Last time I fought you that I can remember, the power of friendship kicked your sorry butt," Davis pointed out sourly.

The Kaiser made an equally sour face in return. "If your friends are so great, then I'm sure they'll forgive you even without the return of their Digimon."

"I'm still not gonna abandon the Digimon here!" Davis argued, putting Chibomon up on his shoulder and balling his hands into fists. "You'll just keep them in a glass case, or, if they hatch, throw them at walls!" He looked up at the little Digimon on his shoulder. "You ready, Chibomon?"

"You bet, Davis!" it chirped bravely, puffing itself up with courage.

The Kaiser just sighed. "You can't break open the case, you idiot. It's reinforced and only I know the code to open it. Have fun wasting your Digimon's energy, though. You'll be the one to turn it back into an egg."

"I'm not aiming for the case," Davis said, cracking his knuckles.

The Kaiser scoffed. "Really? We're going to fight? Fine. Have it your way." He moved in swiftly, ready to land a strike on Davis' left side, but Chibomon was there with its Acid Bubble attack to blind the pale boy. "Auuh!" His hands went to his eyes on reflex. "You'll pay for that!"

Davis then swept his leg across the Kaiser's shins, trying to knock him to the ground. "I don't really want to fight you, Kaiser, but if you won't give me the DigiEggs, you don't leave me a lot of choice."

But the Kaiser jumped back at the last second. "Then it looks like you and I are going to dance, Davis." He smiled in that way of his which was friendly in a sickening sort of way. "You used to love dancing with me. You were a little clumsy, but you got the hang of it eventually."

"Stop stalling!" Chibomon barked in its tiny voice.

Davis growled and launched forward again, trying to deck the Kaiser clean across the face. Obviously, trying to be nice was not going to work. This time Davis landed a hit. The impact sent the Kaiser stumbling backward. He seemed dazed for a moment before he just started to laugh. "How brutish of you, Davis." His feet began moving, stepping across the floor, almost graceful. In one swift turn the Kaiser was behind Davis where he landed a good kick to the teen's spine. "Remember your posture, Davis."

Davis hissed in pain and stumbled forward, but noticed something strange. It didn't hurt as much as he was expecting. He rubbed at his back slightly and felt all of the scar tissue there, and frowned a bit as he did. Banishing the thought, he spun around again and tried grabbing the Kaiser by the collar. "How often did you hurt me?" he asked suddenly.

"Any time you were bad," the Kaiser answered with a chuckle. "And given how stupid you are, I'd say at least every other day."

Davis frowned at first, but soon enough a smile cracked across his face. Then he chuckled. Sputtered. And soon he was laughing hysterically. "Punch me!" he suddenly demanded. "Go on, your best shot! Hit me!"

"Davis, no!" Chibomon squealed in horror. "Don't let him hurt you on purpose!"

The Kaiser grinned. "You should listen to your little friend, Davis."

"No, go on, do it," Davis insisted.

The Kaiser just shrugged. "All right, but you asked for it. Stupid as always." He pulled back his fist and threw it forward right into Davis' eye.

Davis put his hand over his eye, but soon he began to sputter into laughter again. "Oh man," he gasped, looking at the Digimon on his shoulder. "Chibomon, my pain tolerance is amazing! That barely hurt!"

Chibomon frowned and wriggled grumpily. "Well I still don't like him hitting you."

Meanwhile, dark indigo eyes went wide. "Wh...What? No. No, no, no, that can't be!" He thrust his knee into Davis' stomach next. "Go down!"

Davis doubled over, holding his stomach, only to start laughing again. He looked up, tears in his eyes not from pain, but from laughing too hard. "Try again, Kaiser!"

"Tough guy, huh?" The Kaiser reached into his back pocket, pulling out a Taser he had from earlier for Davis' punishment. "How about this!" The twin conductors pressed ruthlessly up against the other boy's chest, sending out a powerful shock of electricity.

"Agh!" Finally, Davis fell to his knees. But that was it. He cried out and hit his knees, but then he just sort of shook his head, eyes wide. "Wow, okay, that one kinda hurt."

The Kaiser stumbled back, finally free from Davis' hold. "You think you can beat me? I'm the game master! This is my world, little boy!" He snapped his fingers and the faithful whip downloaded into his hand. "No one can beat me at my own game!" The Kaiser cracked the whip and it struck Davis full on.

Davis hissed when the whip lashed against his skin, but it was so scarred and numbed to pain that he just flashed a toothy grin. "Nope, we're back to baby hits," he taunted with a smirk, getting to his feet again.

How was this happening? He struck Davis with this whip not an hour ago and the boy had been crying out in pain. Was it all a show? Had Davis just started to pretend it hurt just to please him? No... No, that couldn't be it. "You're lying. You know how much I hate lying, Davis!" He cracked the whip again and again. The thick tip hit the tan teen's stomach, arm, chest, and cheek. Each strike seemed just as ineffective as the last though. The Kaiser just started shouting, whipping Davis again and again.

Finally, Chibomon couldn't take it anymore. Its boy might not be in pain, but it couldn't stand to see its boy hurt. "Stop it! Leave Davis alone!" the tiny Digimon squeaked before leaping off Davis' shoulder to take the brunt of another lashing. It screamed in pain as it fell, skidding and tumbling across the floor into a stop over in the corner.

"Chibomon!" Davis gasped, rushing over to the little Digimon and picking it up off the floor. "Chibomon, why'd you do that?" he asked, eyes wide. "I was fine..."

"I'm supposed to protect you..." he whimpered. "Just because you couldn't feel it, doesn't mean the Kaiser wasn't hurting you. Look... you're bleeding," Chibomon said, eyes on Davis' chest where the skin had been nicked open. "If I don't protect you, then I fail you as your Digimon, Davis."

"Chibomon..." Davis sighed, holding the Digimon close to his chest. He then turned to the Kaiser and frowned at him. "Do we need to go through this again, or will you just give me the DigiEggs so I can leave?"

The Kaiser stood there, slightly slumped over and breathing heavily. Hair fell over the side of his face again, leaving only one eye visible. It looked from Chibomon—cradled so gently—to Davis, to the other DigiEggs, and then back at Davis. Silence as he swallowed and then shook his head, whispering, "No..."

"No, we don't need to go through this again, or no, you're not going to give them to me?"

"I will never... give you... those eggs."

Davis felt about ready to pull his hair out. "Damn it, Kaiser! This isn't funny! You tortured me and kept me prisoner for four years! You made me miss my entire adolescence. I went four years without going to school, you probably tore my family apart, and you won't even atone for any of that by giving me those DigiEggs? All of that, and you expected to be able to get me to love you without the mind control?" He narrowed his eyes at the other boy. "Now I can see why you knew you needed the spiral. You're such an uncaring, selfish bastard that there's no way I'd ever do anything less than hate you otherwise."

A loud _thunk_ resonated throughout the room when the whip dropped. The Kaiser stared back at Davis, looking completely broken and hollow inside. Those words pierced his heart and made his blood run cold. So, that's how it was going to be, huh? "Well then..." he began quietly, "even if I can't make you love me, I can at least keep you here with me." That said, he wandered out of the room, moving like a lost soul through a cemetery.

"What now?" Chibomon asked.

"We find my Digivice so you can Digivolve and break open that case. Then we take the eggs home. No matter how long it takes," Davis said, petting his little Digimon's head. "It's gonna be a lot easier to fight back with you by my side again, Chibomon. Together, the Kaiser can't hold us."

"Together!" Chibomon repeated bravely. It sat all puffed up and proud in Davis' hand when an unusually loud grumbling sound came from his tiny body. "Except..." It deflated cutely and pouted. "I'm really hungry after being in my DigiEgg for so long."

"Oh..." Davis said, frowning gently. He looked around the metal walls of the citadel and frowned deeply. "I haven't a clue where the food is in this place..." He stepped out of the room and picked the direction he saw the Kaiser walking, looking into rooms, trying to find the kitchen to no avail. As he looked, he glanced down at his little Digimon. "Can you even eat solid food like this?"

"I can eat tiny berries," Chibomon said. "Well... I can chew them, but digesting them is hard. Primary Village always had bottles ready for us and the bigger Digimon would help feed us." It frowned sadly. "I dunno where we'll find a bottle of milk here, though... I'm so hungry, Davis."

"Well, I think it's even less likely that we'll find tiny berries, so..." he sighed, starting to walk a bit faster. He couldn't let his poor Digimon go hungry. "Guess I need to ask someone." It didn't seem like there were any Digimon wandering around, though. If there were any servants working in the citadel, they must have been confined to their chambers for the night. He came to a wing that looked a bit homier, less like a metal death trap, and knew he was heading into dangerous territory. But he had to get a bottle for Chibomon. He came upon a door, and, cracking it open a bit, spied a bed inside. He swallowed a bit, but finally swung the door the rest of the way open and looked inside.

The room seemed empty until a quiet, broken, almost sad sounding voice asked, "What do you want?" A lump in the sheets shifted around slightly, but he made no move to sit up. The Kaiser just supposed the boy came to gloat some more or demand the DigiEggs again so he could go home. Which still wasn't going to happen. Over his dead body.

Davis was silent for a moment, but a tiny whimper from Chibomon made him open his mouth to ask, "You wouldn't happen to have any... baby bottles around, would you?"

"I might... What if I do?"

"Well... I kinda need one. For Chibomon."

The Kaiser finally sat up. He wore a black robe tied tightly around his waist, and his hair was pulled back again, albeit loose and messy. "What will you do for it?"

Davis sighed. He didn't want to go through with this, but he had to for Chibomon. "I don't know, whaddya want me to do?"

"Come to bed," the Kaiser answered simply.

Davis bit his lip slightly, looking down at Chibomon. "Okay... I will," he said, looking back up at the Kaiser. "After you help me feed Chibomon."

Chibomon wriggled with another frown. "I'm not _that_ hungry," it grumbled.

The Kaiser sighed. "Can't it wait until morning?"

"No, I'm not gonna let him go hungry overnight," Davis said firmly, putting a finger over Chibomon's lips. He wasn't going to hear it. "He's a baby and he needs to be fed now."

The pale boy groaned. "You're so stubborn. I hate it." But he threw back the covers and set his bare feet on the floor. "I'm sure there are some in the hatchery. Follow me." The Kaiser led them through the seemingly infinite halls of his citadel until they came upon a room full of un-hatched DigiEggs. The only care shown was the small heated nest they were kept in; however, there was a mechanical arm poised over each nest holding a dark ring, ready to latch it onto the baby Digimon once born.

Davis looked, disgusted, at the mechanical arms hovering over the eggs. Baby Digimon were mostly just round, shapeless bodies, anyway. How did the rings even stay on without covering their faces? Davis banished the thought from his mind and stepped past the Kaiser into the room, looking for bottles he was sure even the Kaiser didn't care to know the location of. That's when he noticed a large, feathery Digimon in the corner of the room. It was a giant Swanmon, her eyes glowing red, feeding a bottle to a Punimon whose eyes also glowed red. Ah, the ring latched around one of his little rounded red horns. So that's how it worked. Davis cautiously approached the huge Digimon, who soon turned her head to look at him, her feathers ruffling at being disturbed. Davis bit his lip, but pointed to Chibomon as the little blue baby's stomach grumbled again, in hopes that this was all he needed to get his message across. That's when he felt a tug at his pant leg, and looking down, saw a collared Elecmon offering him a bottle. Davis mumbled out a quick thanks, a little wary of those glowing red eyes, but took the bottle, feeling the warm surface between his fingers for a moment before he grinned and offered it to Chibomon.

Chibomon sniffed at the rubber nipple for a second before a wide smile spread over its face. Without wasting another second or word, it latched onto the bottle and began suckling greedily upon the warm liquid nutrition the bottle had to offer. The Kaiser watched all of this with un-passioned eyes. He felt nothing for the baby Digimon soon to be hatched, only that they be put under control as quickly as possible, fed, evolved, and then sent back out into the world. Davis shuffled back over to the doorway so he could lean against the wall while he fed his Digimon. He remembered, once, having talked to the other Digidestined about how they raised their Digimon from their In-Training forms and watched them become Rookies, and then went on from there. He also heard TK offhandedly mention that he was the only one that got to raise his Digimon from an egg after they defeated Devimon, and how great it was to see Patamon hatch, listen to him learn words as Poyomon, and then Digivolve back into the Tokomon he met at the beginning.

It had sort of made Davis upset that he met Veemon as a Rookie, and not as Chibimon or even Chibomon. So, despite the cold steel walls and the Elecmon and Swanmon and Punimon all staring at him with glowing red eyes, and the Kaiser's attitude so foul that he could feel it like an aura radiating into his personal space, Davis still managed a smile to see Chibomon happily drinking the milk from the bottle Davis held for it. "You know..." the Kaiser began, "you could leave it here with Swanmon and Elecmon. They'll take perfectly good care of your Digimon so you don't have to worry about it."

Chibomon suddenly released the bottle with a gasp, leaving a trail of milk down its chin. It looked up at Davis with wide eyes, then over at the red-eyed Digimon, and then back up at Davis. "Don't leave me with them," it squeaked fearfully.

Davis looked torn. On one hand, he didn't want to leave Chibomon with the controlled Digimon, or the dark rings hovering over those nests. On the other hand, he didn't want to have Chibomon in the room with him and the Kaiser, either. He knew that if the Kaiser got violent again, Chibomon would just put itself into more danger trying to protect him. "I'm... not sure," he said eventually.

"He'll be safe here," the Kaiser insisted.

"I'll be good!" Chibomon cried.

Davis shook his head and said, "Let me think about it," as he offered the bottle back to Chibomon to finish.

At first Chibomon refused the bottle, but Davis was strong and soon had the nipple back in the tiny Digimon's mouth. Tasting the milk reminded Chibomon of how hungry he was, so he drank again, if not reluctantly. Meanwhile, the Kaiser was now smiling just slightly. "Swanmon and Elecmon know how to tend to baby Digimon. Elecmon used to run Primary Village, after all, and Swanmon has excellent maternal skills. Chibomon would be well taken care of. Then you and I will have more time to ourselves."

Davis swallowed hard, the last of the Kaiser's statements definitely making him feel uncomfortable. Something about that smarmy voice of his made anything sound really unsettling. He had to come up with a plan. He could tell how uncomfortable Chibomon was around the mind controlled Digimon, but he didn't want Chibomon in the room with him and the Kaiser. He couldn't put him through that. But were there any Digimon around that weren't mind controlled? He kept thinking as he fed the little Digimon, when he suddenly said, "I want him to stay with Wormmon."

"Wormmon?" The Kaiser looked surprised at first, but he quickly forced it away and shrugged. "Wormmon is hardly good company, but I suppose if that's what you want, I can arrange it."

"Good," Davis said with a nod. He knew Wormmon wasn't kept under the spiral's control and was generally good-natured because of it. He felt safer leaving Chibomon with him than with any other Digimon in the citadel. And he figured, at least, that once it was full of warm milk Chibomon would fall asleep and wouldn't have to wake up until Davis could get it in the morning.

The Kaiser gestured lazily off to the right. "Wormmon's room is down there. Come back to bed once you've made all the arrangements. And Davis... Don't dawdle." With that, he walked away, now bored with what was going on.

Chibomon soon finished his bottle with a soft burp and a look of total contentment on his face. Even as Davis carried him to Wormmon's, he had to ask, "Why can't I stay with you, Davis?"

"I just don't want to make the Kaiser mad, buddy. We can't fight back yet and I want you to be safe," Davis explained as best as he could. "Besides, Wormmon's nice and he's not controlled by a ring." Davis soon found the room he was looking for and opened the door, cautiously calling, "Hello? Wormmon?"

There was the sound of soft scurrying and soon enough Wormmon appeared out from behind a strange-looking box. "Davis?" He seemed confused at first. He couldn't believe what he saw. "Davis, is... is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me," Davis said, scratching at the back of his head. "It's a long story, I guess." He then glanced down the hall, knowing he couldn't take too long. "Listen, is it okay if Chibomon stays with you?"

Blue eyes went even wider. "Chibomon? Well, yes, of course! He's certainly welcome here. I'll have a nest made up for him in no time." Wormmon began scurrying around the room, touching this and that, somehow activating a secondary box that was open on one side, allowing access to the straw and cloth nest inside. "You've certainly been busy, haven't you?" he asked.

"Mhm," Davis responded, walking into the room to place Chibomon down inside the second box. "I wish I could stay and talk, Wormmon, but Ken wants me back to do... something or other in exchange for the bottle he gave me for Chibomon."

Wormmon just nodded. "I know it will probably be hard for you. Davis, do you remember anything you and I talked about?"

Chibomon was sad to leave Davis' hands, but his belly was full of milk, the nest was surprisingly warm, and he was soon drifting off to sleep. "Night, Davis..." he squeaked through a yawn.

"Good night, Chibomon," Davis said with a fond smile, petting the top of his Digimon's head until it fell asleep. He then turned to Wormmon with a quirked brow. "We talked about something? When?" he asked.

"In the special thinking place Ken created for you," he answered. Wormmon smiled in that way of his. "I didn't expect you to remember. You really do become someone else with that spiral on. I taught you about your real self, the one you're back to now. Our talks are what inspired you to seek your freedom in the first place. We also talked about Ken and his feelings. About how he really does love you..."

Davis shivered a bit at that, shaking his head. He didn't want to hear about that. "Thanks, Wormmon," he said, reaching out to offer his finger in a handshake with Wormmon's little claws. He smiled as best as he could. "If that's true, you helped me out more than anyone ever has. I really appreciate that."

Wormmon shook Davis' finger. "You don't owe me anything, Davis, and I know the Kaiser doesn't deserve anything after what he did, but..." His antenna lowered a little. "If you find it in your heart to even try... Please help Ken."

Davis still looked a little uncomfortable. "Maybe," he said, standing up. "But if I do it for anyone, it'll be for you. Not for him." And with that, he bowed his head as a final thanks and headed out of the room, heading off towards the Kaiser's room.

"Davis!" The Kaiser proved to have been waiting eagerly for the tan teen to show up. Once Davis was through the door, the Kaiser threw his pale body at him, arms latching around a strong neck while draped against him. "You kept me waiting forever. You're so bad, you know."

Davis instantly froze, throwing his hands up like he expected to be attacked. "Uh, sorry?" he stammered out. "I wanted to wait for Chibomon to fall asleep."

The Kaiser pouted. "You care more about it than you care about me."

"Well... he _is_ my Digimon," Davis said with a frown. "And my best friend."

"But you and I have been through so much together," the Kaiser insisted while stroking the back of Davis' neck with his fingertips. "I should be your best friend by now."

"I don't even remember any of that," Davis sighed, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck prickle when the Kaiser touched it.

This made the Kaiser smile. "Then it's like we're both virgins again. Maybe we should celebrate by casting ourselves of it."

Davis gagged, putting a hand over his mouth. "Wait. Wait, wait, wait," he said, cautiously removing his hand to first mouth his question before he managed in a whisper, "I'm not a virgin anymore?"

"Of course not," the Kaiser purred as his hand came around to stroke Davis' chest. "Not for two years now."

"Oh man," Davis breathed, running his hand up into his hair. That was one revelation he really wasn't expecting. How old was he now, fifteen, sixteen? "That's... that's kind of freaky."

"Why?" The Kaiser pouted innocently. "It was your idea in the first place, you know."

"M-my idea?" Davis stammered, only to close his eyes and shake his head. "No, no... it was your crazy idea. Couldn't have been mine."

The Kaiser nodded. "Oh, but it was. You came to me one day, seeming rather enlightened and excited about something, and said you wished to show me something. I told you I didn't have the time right then, but you insisted. You said it would make me very happy." He smiled up at Davis coyly. "You always wanted to make me happy. Well, I decided to humor you and let you show me what wonderful new trick you'd learned. Davis, I must say, you were quite skilled. It was all just a passionate blur of sheets, sweat, moaning, skin, and you hovering over me, making me feel amazing." The Kaiser sighed. "I'll never forget it."

Davis felt a cold sweat break out on one side of his forehead. He did not like the idea that he'd done that at all. He never expected to lose his virginity just when he became a teenager, much less with a guy and certainly not with the Kaiser. And of course, least likely of all, in a state where he didn't even remember it. Despite the unfavorable circumstances, he was sort of disappointed that he was denied the memory of his first time, regardless of how freakish it was. "Well, I agreed to coming to bed in exchange for Chibomon's bottle. I didn't say anything about doing... that... again."

"I'm sure you'll come around eventually," the Kaiser sang softly. "Now, off with those clothes so we can go to sleep."

"Do..." Davis started, hesitating before asking, "Do I at least get pajamas?"

"Normally, no." The Kaiser pulled the knot free on his robe, letting it fall away and reveal pale, bare skin. "But neither do I."

Davis choked slightly and cast his eyes at the wall. "I'm keeping my boxers on," he said decidedly.

The Kaiser just nodded. "I'll allow it." Slender legs sauntered to the bed which he crawled into seductively, slipping beneath the black silk sheets and beckoning Davis hither with the crook of a finger. Davis swallowed heavily. This was going to be hard. He inched over to the bed and took off his shirt and pants, trying to be as blunt about it as possible as he tossed them messily on the floor and almost quite literally jumped into bed rather unceremoniously, lying on his side facing the wall. The Kaiser reached over to turn out the lamp, but the soft violet glow of a nightlight in the corner allowed enough light to make out shapes in the room. "Do you want to know what you said to me, Davis?" the now quiet voice asked through the dark.

"What I said to you... when?" Davis asked, his mouth feeling dry as he kept his eyes on the dark wall, ignoring the light that softly backlit the Kaiser's body.

"Right before I took the spiral off."

Davis exhaled slightly, saying, "Sure, tell me."

The Kaiser swallowed. "You said you weren't happy that your love for me wasn't real. You loved me with the spiral on, but... You wanted the love to be real instead. That's what you said." He was silent for a little while before asking, "Do you still want that, Davis?"

Davis grit his teeth—like he often did—when he heard that. There was just no way those words ever came out of his mouth. No way in hell. Eventually, he gripped his pillow and turned his face into it as he said, "I dunno."

"All right." That was all the Kaiser said before rolling over, away from Davis, and curled up on the very edge of the bed where he fell asleep.


	5. One Chance

Davis never got used to sleeping in the Kaiser's bed. And what was even worse was that the Kaiser had wandering hands when he slept. Davis usually found himself in very uncomfortable positions when he woke up and had to wriggle out of them without waking the Kaiser in order to go off to Chibomon, who he spent the rest of the day with. He didn't even bother with the Kaiser during the day. After spending the whole evening with him, he really couldn't stand to spend any more time with him. Everything out of the Kaiser's mouth was either suggestive or a taunt. Sometimes Davis and Chibomon spent the day trying to crack the case with the DigiEggs in it, figure out how that portal mirror worked, or find his Digivice and D-Terminal somewhere within the citadel, but it always ended in failure. Still, they tried day after day for weeks. When Davis put Chibomon to bed, he always thanked him and made sure Wormmon was in the room before he trudged off to the Kaiser's room. Tonight was another one of those nights.

The Kaiser was desperate to get Davis back on his side. Even when working on maintaining his new kingdom, Davis was not far from his mind. It was difficult when the other teen couldn't remember any of the activities they shared. The Kaiser tried taking him to a fight at the arena, but Davis was just disgusted at the barbaric nature of the fight. Another failure. How could he possibly rekindle their relationship? Each day he felt more and more lonely, and the feeling was eating away at his heart. Tonight was a fresh idea, though, one that might actually provide some results. The Kaiser was in his room, again waiting in the black robe, a small smile on his lips.

Davis came into the room grumbling and rubbing his head. Today was a break-open-the-glass-case-day, and after Chibomon's bubbles once again failed to eat away at the glass, Davis tried slamming into it head-first. This, of course, didn't go so well. He was just happy he wasn't bleeding. He didn't seem to notice the Kaiser at first, closing the door behind him and falling quiet as he continued to massage the small bump he made with his rash actions. Finally, brown eyes glanced up and he caught the grin on the Kaiser's face. _Oh, great._ "...Hey," he finally offered.

"Hello, Davis," the Kaiser chirped happily. "I have a surprise for you. Something I think you'll like this time."

"Not like the chained-to-the-wall surprise or the getting-tased surprise?" Davis said sarcastically as he slowly approached the foot of the bed.

The Kaiser laughed lightheartedly, like he just heard a joke. "No, nothing like that. It's something you really enjoyed back when you liked me." He got up from the bed, took Davis' hand, and led him toward the large bathroom doors where Davis' hadn't been allowed to go yet. Davis seemed cautious at first. He wanted to rip his hand from the Kaiser's, but it seemed like a lost cause by now and he just trotted after him. He couldn't deny his curiosity for what exactly could be beyond the doors that was so great, anyway. "Ready?" The Kaiser pushed open the doors to reveal the large lavish bathroom. A wave of comfortable heat hit them, the hot bath the source of said heat. As usual, it overflowed with sweet-smelling bubbles. There were even some floating through the air, little liquid rainbows that wandered aimlessly until popping. "You loved taking baths with me," the Kaiser insisted.

"Uh-huh..." Davis said, watching the bubbles drip down the edge of the tub. The tan-skinned boy didn't seem too on board with the idea, but the tub was big enough for them to sit at two opposite ends and he hadn't had a bath in far too long, anyway. Normally Davis would fight a bath, like when his mother insisted he wash himself free of mud after a soccer game in the rain. But he needed to wash off... Kaiser cooties. So a bath was in order. "Well... okay, I guess."

The Kaiser grinned. "Good. Maybe it'll spark a memory or two." He pulled Davis even further into the bathroom until they were at the steps of the tub. At that point, he let go of Davis' hand so the teen could undress himself, since that was probably what he preferred. The Kaiser dropped his robe and slipped into the tub. "Mmmmmm... Nice and warm..." Davis still seemed wary, but soon discarded his clothing, letting it slip onto the tiled floor before he too was in the water, though he entered more with a splash than a gentle ripple as the Kaiser did. He then shifted over to the corner of the tub away from the Kaiser and let himself sink into the warm water. He had to admit, it felt pretty relaxing. "You're enjoying yourself already." The Kaiser picked up the bar of soap, floated almost silently over to Davis, and picked up his foot to begin washing it.

Davis inhaled sharply, his first instinct to jerk away from the Kaiser's touch. But, after a second, he frowned and asked, "Why're you washing my foot?"

"I always start with your feet," the Kaiser replied. "You would always let me wash you, Davis. You especially loved for me to wash your back." The soap moved up Davis' calf. "And then you would get to wash me." Davis wanted to jerk his leg away, but he could feel how tightly the Kaiser gripped his skin, willing him to let him finish. So, Davis sighed and leaned back against the edge of the tub, letting the Kaiser wash him. If it'd really make him happy, Davis didn't see the harm in it. Eventually, unintentionally, his eyes slid shut. The Kaiser was silent as he washed Davis. It really did make him happy and provided a mild sense of control. He'd missed that. Being in control. He washed the other leg and soon his hand snuck its way between them to gently wash in a very private and sensitive location.

"Ah!" Davis gasped loudly, his eyes snapping open and his face immediately coloring with a dark blush. "W-Wh-What do you think you're doing?!"

"I have to get you clean, Davis. That includes behind the ears, under the feet, and between the legs." The Kaiser pouted slightly. "You used to not make so much of a fuss."

"I wouldn't mind if you didn't touch me there, thanks," Davis said quickly, trying to close his legs.

The Kaiser just hummed with a frown. "Well, I'm done there anyway." So his hand moved along, up to Davis' stomach and across his chest. "But isn't this at least relaxing? A good hot bath does a person wonders."

"It would be if you hadn't done that," Davis murmured, his face still hot with a blush, brown eyes looking away from the Kaiser and instead at the tiled wall.

Now the Kaiser scowled. "It wouldn't hurt you to try, Davis. I mean really."

Davis cast a sour glance back at the Kaiser. "Just don't do that."

"I'm not talking about this!" the Kaiser snapped. "I mean everything up until now! I've busted my ass trying to make you happy, but you resist me every step of the way. Worst of all is that when you're unhappy, I find myself feeling unhappy. I hate it! Why can't you even try liking me again? Surely it's not that hard."

"I'm not going to like you because you're evil and you're keeping me here!" Davis growled back. "I'm never going to like someone who's done all of the terrible things you have. Don't you get that?"

The Kaiser’s answer was a loud slap across Davis' face. "You ungrateful little brat," he hissed.

Davis’ head was thrown to the side, and he groaned as he rubbed his fingers on the mark. It didn't hurt so much after the initial sting, but his eyes were still wide with confusion from the action. "What!"

"I granted you the one thing you wanted most and this is how you repay me!"

"I don't even remember asking for this!" Davis snapped back, suddenly pushing the Kaiser back in the water and standing up.

The Kaiser flailed in the water before regaining his composure. "That isn't my fault! You just need to think harder!" He grabbed the other boy's ankle and pulled his foot out from under him. "You wanted to be real and to love me for real, but so far all you've done is treat me like shit, Davis!"

Davis cried out as he slipped, falling under the water. He scrambled to the surface, gasping for air when he emerged, his hair pressed flat to his head and his tan skin dripping with water. "No, I didn't want that!" he spat, water leaking from his lips. "You had me under mind control that made me think I wanted that!"

"Well maybe I should put you back under mind control, then!"

"I won't let you!" Davis growled. "You've already taken away enough years of my life."

"What do you care?" the Kaiser snarled. "You won't know the difference. I'll be your master again, you'll be happy, and I'll turn your Digimon back into an egg. It'll be like nothing ever happened. It's so easy, Davis."

"No..." Davis choked on a sob that he hadn't intended to let out, one he held back through grit teeth and growled out words. He scrubbed at his face with the back of his arm, taking in a deep, sharp breath. "If you care anything about what I really want, th-that's the last thing you'd do."

The Kaiser felt a painful restriction in his chest. "You really do care about that worthless blue blob more than you care about me." He scoffed weakly. "You probably care more about dirt than you do me." The Kaiser tried pushing his dark hair back, but the water made it heavy so it just fell into his face again. "Get out," the boy finally said weakly. "Just get out of here. You don't have to sleep with me tonight. Do whatever the hell you want, Davis."

But Davis didn't seem to hear most of what the Kaiser said. In fact, he totally ignored his words to cry into his arm. Tears leaked through the space between his arm and his cheeks, salty droplets falling into the warm bath water.

"Davis? Oh, Davis... C'mon..." The Kaiser moved closer, the pain in his chest just getting worse from watching the boy cry. "Don't... Don't do that. Look, I won't hurt Chibomon, all right? Calm down."

But Davis' crying just grew harder, tears he refused to let flow for so very long finally spilling out. He cried like a child, unfitting the foreign, teen-aged body he found himself in, making gasping, whimpering noises as he continuously tried to wipe his eyes dry, to no avail.

The Kaiser lifted one hand out of the water and hesitantly placed it on the teen's shoulder. "Davis. Davis." When this didn't help either, the Kaiser decided to do something bold. He moved in closer again until he was up alongside Davis and drew the built body into a hug. "Davis, sshhh... Sshhh..." He sought to tuck the boy's head under his chin, rocking him gently where they sat. "Sshhh... It's okay. Sshhh..."

"Auh... auuh..." Davis gasped. The tanned boy actually leaned into the Kaiser's chest, his now bloodshot eyes pressed into the pale skin as he continued sobbing. His hands landed on the Kaiser's shoulders and gripped them tightly, he not seeming to care about their close vicinity as years worth of tears poured down the Kaiser's chest.

The Kaiser allowed his former slave to cry. It was a natural process he had to let happen. To deny someone tears, well... It just wasn't human. When Davis seemed to calm down a bit, the Kaiser spoke quietly and carefully. "Davis, I want you to listen." He pet the head of brown hair. "I know you want to go home, but I'm not so sure the real world will be good for you. This isn't an excuse to keep you here. I swear. But... Look at yourself right now. You can barely handle your new body in an enclosed environment like my citadel. If you go back to the real world, you might face a culture shock. A lot can happen in four years, Davis. The real world might be a completely different place."

Davis retired to silent tears, slipping down his face but with no gasps or groans to couple with them. "It can't be," he whined when the Kaiser was done talking. "I have to go back to my family and my friends... everything'll go back to normal wh-wh-when I go back..."

The pale boy shook his head. "Davis, you know that isn't true. You've missed out on too much. Do you know what kind of frenzy you'll cause if you go back? It will be too much for you to handle."

"No..." Davis said, shaking his head. "No, I have to. What if... what if they think I'm dead? D-Don't you think they care?"

"I'm sure they do," the Kaiser admitted reluctantly. "But you should really let sleeping dogs lie, Davis. I care too, you know."

Davis swallowed hard, sounding conflicted as he asked, "Did... did my friends look for me?"

The Kaiser nodded. "Incessantly. Even after I won their Digimon, they still came back here looking for you. But one day... they just didn't come back."

"They just stopped?" Davis asked quietly.

"After years of stripping the Digital world for you, I think they assumed the worst. Searching for a body that could not be found was too painful for them."

"I can't let them think that," Davis said, shaking his head.

"I'm sure they've moved on," the Kaiser insisted. "Don't pick at their wounds, Davis. Let them believe you're in a better place. Imagine if you went back now, looking the way you do, and not even able to explain where you've been."

Davis opened his mouth to say something, but no more words came forth. Eventually, he closed his mouth and looked down, shaking a bit and letting more tears spring forth. "I guess..." he managed after a few minutes more, "I guess you're right."

"It hurts, I know." The Kaiser drew Davis in closer, stroking his neck and back gently. "But Davis, you know I can give you practically anything you want. The Digital World is ready to be redesigned in our image. We can make it whatever we want it to be. We can create arcades, fast food restaurants, the park, even your old room. I can make this place feel like home if you just give me a chance."

At that point, crying into the Kaiser's chest and having his back stroked by that strangely comforting hand, it seemed like he had no other options but to try and give the Kaiser a shot. Davis didn't really have any other options. "Okay..." he said softly. "One chance."

The Kaiser smiled, kissing the top of the other's head. "You won't regret this, Davis."

"I hope not," Davis responded, before his eyes slid shut and he'd just as soon drifted off to sleep against the Kaiser's chest.


	6. Surprise

"Davis..." The Kaiser was up all night making plans. "Daaaavis..." He spent hours programming it all together. "Daaaavviiisss..." Now it was time for the big unveiling. If only the boy it was all meant for would wake up. "Davis!"

"Mhhn..." Davis grumbled, shaking his head with his eyes shut. "Five more minutes..." he protested.

"But I have the most wonderful surprise for yooouuuuu..." the Kaiser sang.

Davis groaned, but finally blinked his eyes open, rubbing at them with the back of his fists. "What is it?" he asked as he pulled his hands away.

"Now now, Davis. If I tell you, then it won't be a surprise, now will it?" the Kaiser said with a laugh. "Hurry and get dressed. You're going to love it!"

"Okay, okay," Davis said, getting up and feeling around until he got out of bed, yawning and heading for the closet. It was still sort of odd to have to sort through the Kaiser's clothing to get to his own, but he just ignored it and got dressed in a muscle shirt and jeans. That was pretty much that was in there... that he would consider wearing, anyway.

The Kaiser smiled and clapped. "Good! Now come with me." He grabbed the other boy's hand and pulled him along. "You said I only get one chance, so I knew I had to do something amazing. I had to think a long time about what exactly I would do to impress you. Well, I finally got it. You wanted to go home, right? So I decided to bring home to you!" With that, he opened a door that led to the outside. Light came pouring in, blinding them at first, but then it was revealed: a perfect replica of Odaiba. The citadel was in the place of Ken's old apartment and everything else was in perfect distance and proportion of it. "So... What do you think?"

Davis blinked in surprise when he was met with Odaiba. He looked around, stepping out onto the sidewalk. He didn't know the area around Ken's apartment too well, but he did recognize the styles of buildings and the park he could see just the corners of down the street. A breath of awe escaped him as he turned around to look at the other boy. "This is incredible," he said, sounding dumbfounded.

The Kaiser seemed genuinely happy as he smiled at Davis. "So does that mean you like it? I did good, right?"

"Yeah, I really do," Davis said, finally managing a smile. "This must've taken forever."

"I didn't get any sleep last night, but it was all worth it, if it makes you happy." The Kaiser latched onto Davis' arm. "Where do you want to go first? The arcade? The movies? Fast food?"

Davis scratched at the back of his head, looking overwhelmed. "I guess, uh... The arcade sounds good!" Davis decided, suddenly sounding excited and grabbing the other boy's hand, rushing off in the direction he knew the arcade was.

The Kaiser managed a laugh as well. Finally, Davis was happy. Maybe now he wouldn't be so adamant about going home. As they went, Davis might notice the peculiarity of the people. They had no real faces to speak of. Their features were only accented by shadows. When listening close enough, one could tell they weren't really talking, but a soft garble of voices just floated through the air. Their appearances also started repeating themselves. It turned out that the Kaiser only designed five base women and five base men, and each one was just colored differently. "And the best part is that everything is free here. You can play at the arcade all day and not have to spend a single dime!"

"Well, that's good... I don't have any money, anyway..." Davis said, his eyes starting to catch sight of the other people. The blank faces were... sort of creepy. And the more he saw the same person over and over again, the more he slowed down, the excited spark in his eyes giving way to a lonelier look.

The Kaiser noticed how Davis slowed down. When looking at that tan face, he was disappointed to see the loneliness sinking back in. The Kaiser frowned. "What's wrong, Davis? You were so excited a second ago."

"The people..." Davis said, looking around as more mumbling people walked slowly past them on both sides.

"Hm, the people? Oh don't mind them. They're all just going about their business. You and I have our own adventure to go on." Davis still looked uneasy, but took it upon himself to ignore the digitally-created townspeople. He said he was going to give the Kaiser one chance, and he was going to stick by his word. So, he nodded and continued leading the way to the arcade. "It was a lot of work for one night, Davis," the Kaiser insisted. "Given more time... I can work on the people some more. Okay? Just please don't look so unhappy. I'm really trying here."

"Yeah, I understand, sorry," Davis said, shaking his head. "It was just weird when I first noticed, y'know?" he asked before laughing, quiet.

"I know. It was the best I could do at the time." They soon arrived at the arcade, which was loud and flashing with lights and colors. There were more kids inside, also with blank faces, but they at least managed to laugh. "So, what should we play first? I made sure to put all the latest and greatest in here." By which he meant the newest games from four years ago. Aside from making non-distracting people, the Kaiser designed Odaiba the way it was four years ago. He didn't want to let Davis get used to all the changes that happened, thus making him more capable of surviving there should he ever escape. Of course, Davis didn't even notice the difference. Everything was familiar and the way he expected it. He quickly rushed off to his favorites, dragging the Kaiser to the shooters, the racing games, and almost everything else. Without the restraint of quarters being needed, Davis just took them to game after game until they exhausted almost all of the possibilities. And he had to admit, for a guy that he didn't think he'd get along with, the other boy was wicked at video games at the least.

The Kaiser was quite the wiz at video games. He had a knack for technology, after all, and while video games were usually seen as a waste of time and energy by him, he liked playing with Davis. There were times when the Kaiser let the other boy win, simply because dominating Davis each time would completely contradict his goal. He needed to gain Davis' trust and friendship, and kicking his ass at games was not the way to do it. Davis grinned when he won the final game they played. He stepped back from the controls, pumping his fists and making noises like a crowd cheering. After a moment, though, his stomach growled, and his victorious grin turned sheepish. "You said something about fast food before, right?"

"Mhmm." The Kaiser nodded and turned his head slightly. "Burgers and fries right around the corner, pizza down the street, or sushi the next block over. What's your taste, Davis?"

Davis pondered for a moment before just grinning and shrugging. "Burgers are closest, so burgers it is."

"Burgers it is then." A slender hand laced in with a callused hand and they were off. The Kaiser was more in the mood for sushi, but pleasing Davis was critical these first few trips out. There would be plenty of time for compromise later. At the burger joint, he walked up to the counter where a girl in a red and yellow uniform stood.

"Your order?" The words were surprisingly clear, but obviously limited to just that.

"I'll have a turkey burger, extra tomato, no mustard, lettuce, and easy on the onions. Also, I'll have a small order of fries and... a medium Sprite." He then looked over his shoulder at Davis. "What can I get for you?"

"Um..." Davis looked across the board and started pointing out combos. "One of those," he said, referring to the double cheeseburger that came with a large drink and fries, "one of those," he said, now pointing to the restaurant's specialty that came with the same sides, "and some chicken nuggets," he said with an affirmative nod."

Dark indigo eyes slowly widened as Davis expressed his food desires. "All that? Really?"

Davis quirked a brow, looking over at the other boy. "Yeah, why?"

"Just seems like a lot of food. Are you really going to eat all of it?"

"Yup," Davis said with a nod and a shrug. "I'm hungry."

"All right, then, if that's what you really want." The Kaiser relayed the order to the girl who punched it into her register and then went off to prepare the food. "Go find us a table, Davis," he said with a small wave of his hand. Davis nodded and headed off into the fast food place. Most of the tables were empty, but some were occupied by those strange, faceless people, who didn't seem to eat so much as hold food to where their mouths should be as the food slowly vanished. Davis swallowed slightly, finding a booth that was tucked away in a corner, apart from everyone else. The Kaiser found him hiding away there. He approached with the tray and laughed slightly. "Wanted some privacy, eh? We can feed each other fries and call each other names like sweetie and honey."

When normally Davis would have gagged, he was actually in a good enough mood despite the weird people that he laughed, taking it as a joke rather than a disgusting come on. "I like the corner," he said simply.

"Fair enough." The Kaiser set the tray down and took a seat across from Davis. He unwrapped his burger, making sure the paper was flat and even, placed his fries on the left, little paper cup of ketchup below it, and his drink on the right. The rest of the food on the tray was pushed over to the boy who claimed would eat it all. "Have you been enjoying yourself so far today, Davis?"

"Yeah, it's been a good day," Davis said as he hastily tore off the wrapper from the first burger and started tearing into it. "How about you?" he asked with his mouth full.

Unable to help himself any longer, the Kaiser curled his upper lip slightly in disgust and frowned. "Honestly, Davis, show a little class."

Davis sighed, rolling his eyes as he chewed his food before he spoke. "Well excuse me."

The pale boy huffed. "Well it is rude to talk with your mouth full. That's not just my rule, you know. It's common courtesy."

Davis shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well, I'm not courtes... ful."

"Courteous, Davis," the Kaiser sighed. "To practice courtesy is to be courteous."

"Well I say it's courtesful, so there," Davis said with a smirk, before he took one of his drinks in his other hand and began to sip on the straw out of the corner of his mouth.

The Kaiser was already feeling agitated. "That's not even a word, Davis. You sound like an uneducated street monkey. Have some pride and say it right."

"Oh, lighten up," Davis snickered. "I'm just messing with you."

"Ha ha, yes, very funny." The Kaiser rolled his dark eyes himself before taking a bite of his own burger. He chewed a designated number of times before swallowing and then taking a drink to wash it down. "All of that aside, I actually had a nice time today. It was good to get out and do something I think."

"It's cool that you were able to make Odaiba," Davis commented with a nod, before going back to his burger, which became nearly nothing while the Kaiser was talking. And soon enough it was just a crumpled-up paper before Davis went back to sucking down his soda.

A humble nod replaced bold pride. "I knew it was what you wanted." Davis looked over at the other boy, noticing that change in attitude and tone. Now he felt a little guilty, taking and not giving. He thought for a second, before he reached into one of his French fry containers and reached a long one across the table. The Kaiser was attending his own food, so he didn't notice the fry at first. It wasn't until he happened to glance up that the floating French fry got his attention. He stared curiously at first before giving something between and amused smirk and a hurt frown. "I didn't poison it, Davis," he insisted.

"Pfft," Davis snorted, a laugh he reigned back. "No, don't you remember what you said like, three seconds ago?"

"What I said? ...Oh!" That's when a smile managed to curl on his lips. So, Davis was finally coming around, huh? The Kaiser leaned forward, taking the fry into his mouth, and then leaned back again. "I must admit, this American style food isn't half bad."

"Mhm," Davis agreed, not opening his mouth as it was just as soon occupied with the first bite of his second burger. And it was scarfed down just as quickly as the first, Davis crumpling up the paper and dropping it on the tray before he shook his cup, realizing the first one was just ice and picking up the second one. "I used to come here with my team after a soccer game sometimes," he said when he finished the food in his mouth, transferring the straw from the empty cup to the new one before he began sipping on it.

"Oh? Reward for a victory well earned?" the Kaiser asked curiously. "My coach insisted on taking us out for ice cream when we won, but I always thought it was a pointless system." The boy munched on a few more of his fries, seeing as how his burger was also now finished.

Davis shrugged. "I liked when we did it. I mean, I didn't ever get invited to the after game parties or anything, but when the coach treated us, everyone came."

"I believe in counter reinforcement," the Kaiser said, not picking up on Davis' desire to be part of a group rather than be rewarded. "Failure should be punished so as to learn to do better. The reward for success is the absence of punishment. If an even mildly intelligent creature can learn that success equals no punishment, then they will work harder to succeed."

"Doesn't that accomplish the same thing?" Davis asked, kicking his feet as he began nibbling on his French fries.

"Yes, but your method is more time consuming."

"It takes more time and effort to punch someone than it does to throw them a bone," Davis responded with a shrug, as he flipped off the top of his soda and experimentally dipped the fries into it, seeing how they tasted, only for his eyebrows to raise and he to continue.

"If good behavior is the ultimate goal through positive reinforcement, then you would spend more time rewarding its every occurrence. If good behavior is the ultimate goal through counter reinforcement, you only have to spend time punishing the few bad behavior occurrences. After that, once the good behavior is achieved, your time is free."

"Uh-huh," Davis said, nodding his head as he nibbled on another soda-soaked fry. "So do you... always do negative reinforcement?"

The Kaiser nodded. "Probably ninety-five percent of the time, yes."

"And what about the other five percent?"

"That's you, Davis."

"Oh..." Davis said, looking a little surprised. He opened his mouth, closed it, and then opened it again, but still found no words and went back to sucking on his soda, smiling slightly around the straw.

"Naturally I did punish you when you were bad. You had to be taught that you'd done something wrong, but..." Dark indigo eyes stared down at the still unfolded paper wrapper which he now used a fry and ketchup to draw on. "When you fixed your mistake, I made sure to reward you as well. I also rewarded you at times when you were especially good. When you earned it. I really did take care of you, Davis. I saw to it that you were loved, even in hard times."

"That sounds nice," Davis said around his straw. "Wish I remembered it. The good parts, at least."

The Kaiser sighed. "That makes two of us..." Suddenly having lost his appetite, the boy stood. "Feel free to keep exploring. I haven't programmed anything beyond Odaiba, so if you try to cross the bridge, you'll just exit the barrier. Oh... and don't go to your apartment yet. I haven't finished your family." With that he turned to leave, walking with his head down and arms folded across his body.

Davis frowned, getting up from the table and trotting after the other boy. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked as he followed behind him.

The Kaiser shook his head, long ponytail swaying across his back. "Davis, please... Not now..."

Davis gave an over-dramatic huff. "Geez, d'ya want me to care or not?"

"Of course I do!" The Kaiser turned around. His cheeks were dark pink and his bottom eyelids were puffy as he tried not crying. "But it would be so much easier if you could remember anything! My god, Davis. I know this is hard for you, but it's hard for me too! You don't remember all the good times. You don't remember us making love. I gave myself to you and you don't even remember... Do you know how hard that is?!"

Davis' eyes widened as he stopped in his tracks. He had not expected that reaction. "N-no, I guess I don't," he stammered. "Sorry..."

"That's right. You don't. You may have a world, family, and friends to go back to, but I don't. _You_ are my world, Davis," he choked out. "So forgive me if I have a hard time letting you go."

Davis cautiously stepped closer, offering his arms. "I'm still giving you that one chance, so... I'm not going anywhere right now."

The Kaiser gave in and submitted to those outstretched arms. "I've never had to work this hard for anything," he said into Davis' chest.

Davis couldn't help a chuckle as one hand came to touch the Kaiser's hair and the other the small of his back. "Sorry," he said quietly.

"You should be," he said, "but you're worth it."

Those words actually warmed Davis' heart a bit. Even if it was the Kaiser, feeling wanted was... a nice feeling. Sighing a bit at his conflicting feelings, Davis buried his face in the head of dark locks.

"You used to do that," the Kaiser began softly, "when I had a bad day. You would tell me... My hair looked like the sky at night and my skin was like the moon. You had a great fondness for the moon, Davis."

"Well... 'cause I do like the moon," Davis said into the Kaiser's hair. "I like to go outside and look at it on clear nights."

"Why the moon, though, Davis? What's so special about the moon?"

"It's incomplete, but still whole, y'know?" Davis murmured. "Like, there's craters all over it, chunks missing, but when it's full, it still looks like a whole circle despite its flaws. If that makes sense."

The Kaiser nodded. "It makes perfect sense, Davis. It's a rather hopeful thought, as well. You don't always speak eloquently, but you have beautiful ideas, Davis. I was always impressed by that."

"Heh, thanks," Davis said, in the sort of voice where he might have been scratching at the back of his head, embarrassed, if he weren't snaking his hands around the Kaiser's waist. "Most people don't think that I think about stuff."

He continued to nod in understanding. "I was aware of your contemplative habits. I just never realized how deeply you managed to do so. Most boys your age... don't think about much of anything, except girls and food, really." The Kaiser smiled at the hands encircling his waist and moved in closer with the hold.

"Well, I still thought about those things," Davis said with a snicker. "But I thought about other stuff, too. It's just so much easier to spend a few hours staring at the moon and thinking than trying to think all the time during the day, y'know? Multi-tasking isn't my thing."

"Do you still think about girls?" the Kaiser asked warily.

Davis glanced to the side, quiet for a moment. "Not really," he answered.

"It's all right, Davis," he insisted.

"I'm not really..." Davis murmured, "Out. Y'know."

The Kaiser offered up a smile. "There's no one to hide from here, Davis. It's safe here."

Davis glanced around a bit, exhaling gently. "I guess you're right. It's just weird, y'know?"

The Kaiser stroked the back of Davis' neck. "Are you comfortable with it, yet?" he asked.

"Not really," Davis said, shuffling one of his feet slightly. "It's still really new to me. Well, I guess it's not, since I found out when I was twelve, but it is, because... well, you know what I mean."

"I can help," he sang sweetly, "if you let me, Davis."

Davis swallowed slightly, lifting his head up a bit. "I-I don't know..."

"I won't bite, I promise," the boy purred with a smile. "I'll make you feel good."

Davis felt a blush creeping across his cheeks. He inhaled sharply and continued to debate within his mind. But then came his promise of giving the Kaiser one chance. And with that, he sighed and nodded his head. "Okay, but... be patient with me, okay?"

The Kaiser nodded. "I always have been, Davis." Without another word, he took Davis by the hand and led him back home. "You and I did this sort of thing all the time. I'm sure once you get started, you'll fall right into the rhythm." He brought the other boy all the way up to his room where the door was promptly shut and locked.

"Um..." Davis murmured, looking a little nervous as the Kaiser locked the door. "I don't know about that, m-maybe we should start slow..."

The pale one laughed lightly. "Davis, what do you think I'm talking about?"

Davis scratched at the back of his head, looking confused now. "Well, uh, I mean, we're _here_, right? So..." Eventually he closed his eyes and exhaled heavily. "I dunno."

He laughed delightedly now. "You're so funny Davis." After removing his shoes, the Kaiser got onto his bed, atop the sheets, and pat the spot across from him. "Come. Sit."

Davis took his own shoes off as well just because of the Kaiser's example and edged over to the bed, sitting down on the spot offered to him. "So... if that's not it, what're we doing?" he asked slowly.

The Kaiser shook his head with a smile. "Kiss my cheek," he said placing a finger on the right side of his face.

Davis bit his bottom lip, but eventually breathed in, let it go, and leaned over on his hands to place a light peck on the Kaiser's cheek.

"Good, Davis." The Kaiser then leaned over and kissed Davis' left cheek in return. "Now, kiss my forehead," he said and pointed again.

Again, Davis hovered for a second before pushing himself up onto his knees to kiss the Kaiser's forehead fleetingly.

"Good, Davis," he praised once more. As a reward, he returned the kiss in the same place on the tan boy. "Now on my nose." The Kaiser smiled, tapping the end of the pale point.

Davis felt the blush on his cheeks coming back full force. Even something as simple as this was very uncomfortable for the boy, but he was adamant to stick by his promise and maybe learn something about himself from the Kaiser in return. So, he nodded and did as he was told again.

"Very good, Davis." His hands came to rest in his lap as the Kaiser stared at his partner. "How do you feel?"

"Nervous," Davis answered with a laugh, scratching at the back of his head.

He tilted his head. "But do you feel bad?"

"Well, no, not bad..." Davis said, shaking his head.

"Then kiss my neck," the Kaiser instructed while opening the area for Davis to reach.

Davis steeled himself, leaning close to the Kaiser's neck. He licked his lips before he leaned in and placed them on the pale skin, leaving a kiss there only to pull back just slightly. He swallowed hard again and gained more resolve, and placed a second kiss on his neck, with a bit more sureness the second time.

The Kaiser hummed. "Very good, Davis. Very good." He turned his head back up so he could move in and place his own series of kisses on Davis' neck. Obviously the Kaiser had no real problems with this. It came naturally to him, given how long they'd been doing it together. But as promised, he would be patient with the other boy and take it slow.

"Mh..." Davis' fingers curled into the sheets a bit as the Kaiser's mouth moved over his skin. It was a feeling that graced his skin so many times before, but he could never remember feeling, so still his eyes closed and he made small noises of unsure enjoyment.

"Sshhh..." He hushed the other boy gently. "It's okay. Don't be scared to enjoy it. You're supposed to."

"S-sorry," Davis apologized, his fingers clutching a bit tighter. "I've just... never felt this before."

"But you like it," the Kaiser said more as a command than a suggestion or question. That's when he took Davis' clenched hands off the sheets and placed them on his sides. "Now lift this up and off."

Davis hesitated, but soon gripped the fabric of the Kaiser's shirt and pulled it off over his head, letting it fall from his hands carelessly.

The Kaiser pouted in disappointment. "A little unceremonious, but I supposed I'll forgive it. Now let's practice touching." He turned around, sitting with his back to the boy. "Try kneading my shoulders, Davis. When you feel comfortable with it, kiss the back of my neck. Maybe even behind my ear if you wish."

"Kneading?" Davis asked, looking confused as his hands came to rest on the Kaiser's shoulders. "You mean like... a massage?"

"Yes, Davis. That's exactly what I mean. You loved giving me massages." Dark eyes glanced over his shoulder. "Go ahead."

"Well... alright," Davis said, before his hands pressed into the Kaiser's skin and he was soon kneading his hands into tense shoulders. At first, he didn't seem to realize what he could do and was too gentle, but soon he seemed to realize the power contained within arms he was still unused to and finally reached a level of pressure that would actually melt away the stiffness. Remembering the Kaiser's words, when he was used to what he was doing, Davis leaned closer and gently kissed a bit of skin that was revealed in the part of the Kaiser's long hair on his neck.

Now the Kaiser was humming with content. There was that strong warm magic he remembered from Davis' callused, yet gentle hands. "You're brilliant," he purred deeply. His own hands reached back to slide up along jean-clad thighs, rubbing and gripping firmly. "Mhhn... Davis, I thought I would never get to feel this again. It's so good."

Davis gasped slightly, his legs shifting a bit closer together. "Um... I'm glad, I guess," he said with a nervous laugh, as his hands continued to work.

"Mmmnn... See if you can get lower." The Kaiser brought his ponytail around the front of his body before laying chest down on the bed. "I'm so stiff and sore from working all night. That chair can get so uncomfortable sometimes."

Davi bit his lip, but nodded, saying, "Uh-huh, I'll try," as his hands moved lower, pushing soon at the Kaiser's spine and kneading the skin around it, even earning one or two satisfying cracking sounds as he worked.

"Oohhhh... Davis..." he moaned a bit dramatically, but it felt that good. Among all the noises the Kaiser was making, there came a soft scratching at the bedroom door. He heard it but did his best to ignore it, hoping Davis would do the same.

Davis kept going, but he heard the scratching at the door and looked over at it. "Um... I think someone's..."

The Kaiser tensed. "Don't pay any attention to it. Sometimes the Gazimon come by thinking I might need something, but they go away soon enough. Just keep going."

Only the quiet scratching didn't stop. In fact, it got a little louder and soon a tiny voice came calling, "Davis?"

At that, Davis lifted his hands, looking surprised when he heard his name. He got up and at once went over to the door, with total disregard for the Kaiser's order for him to disregard the scratching. "Yeah?" he asked as he approached, fumbling with the lock.

The Kaiser was immediately up on his hands and knees. "Davis, stop!" he ordered. "Come back here right now. We aren't done yet."

"Davis?" the tiny voice called again. "You said you were gonna play with me today."

"He doesn't have time for you!" the Kaiser shouted.

"Hey!" Davis snapped, looking over his shoulder with wide eyes. "That's not nice. I spent the whole day with you."

"And you've been spending weeks with him!" the boy argued. "I deserve one day."

'I'll come back later!" Davis said defensively. "Just give me an hour or two."

"We were in the middle of something!" he argued, looking for any excuse.

"Davis..." Chibomon's voice called again, now sounding a tad hurt and disappointed.

"C'mon," Davis pleaded, hand still on the knob. "Just a few hours. I'll be back before you know it."

Bitter jealousy rose in his throat like a hot lump of bile, but he swallowed it back down. _You have to win Davis over. You have to win Davis over._ This was his internal mantra and the only thing keeping him sane enough to not chain the tan teen to his bed. "Fine, you get three hours. But that's it!"

Davis offered a genuine smile. "Thanks," he said. "Three hours." And with that, he stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him, looking down at the Digimon now at his feet. "Sorry about that, buddy."

Chibomon had the cutest frown on his face and was wriggling grumpily. "Was he hurting you, Davis? When you didn't come to feed me this morning, I knew something was wrong. I knew I had to come save you!" He waddled up to the door and pushed his forehead against it as if he was trying to fight it. "That Kaiser had better watch out or I'll be coming for him next!"

"No Chibomon, I'm fine," Davis said with a bit of a sad smile as he picked the tiny Digimon up in his hands. "I'm sorry about that. Here, let's get you something to eat now, okay?"

"Hey! Hey! Hey, Davis!" Chibomon said as he bounced in his boy's hands.

"Hm? What is it, Chibomon?" Davis asked, looking down at the little Digimon.

Suddenly he was smiling proudly. "I think I know where your Digivice is stashed!"


	7. The Dark Spore

Davis' eyes widened and he suddenly picked up his pace a bit to take them even farther away from the Kaiser's door. Luckily, he started walking towards the nursery already, so hopefully the Kaiser didn't hear the little Digimon's unfortunately loud voice. When they were far enough away, Davis asked, "Yeah? How'd you figure that out?"

Now Chibomon grinned with a devilish curl of his lips. "I followed some Gazimon today. I was really sneaky, Davis. You shoulda seen me. They didn't even know I was there! Well, I was hoping they would lead me to the room where the Digivices are stashed. They go into a lot of rooms. None of the ones I saw into had any Digivices in them, but there was one door that had lots of security on it. Like only the Kaiser is allowed in. I figure whatever is inside must be really important. What's more important than your Digivice!"

Davis nodded his head, now also smiling. "Good point Chibomon, good point!" he said, patting his Digimon on the head appraisingly. "Great job, buddy. Now we just need to figure out a way to get inside."

"We break in of course!"

"Sounds good to me," Davis said with a smirk. "But let's grab you some food, first. Can't bust in without any energy. Alright, Chibomon?"

The tiny Digimon wiggled as his form of a nod. "Okay, Davis."

Davis nodded and they headed down to the nursery. Swanmon and Elecmon fussed over a crying Tokomon, but Davis knew where the bottles were by now and took one before edging out of the room. "Now, where is this high security room, Chibomon?" Davis asked in a whisper as he offered the bottle to the tiny Digimon.

There was no initial response as Chibomon found the bottle much more desirable than answering. He latched on and began suckling on the sweet milk inside. Not wanting to let go, he ended up pointed the way with his little head tail. Davis laughed a bit and started to follow the way Chibomon pointed as he sucked down his meal. Down hallways, stairways, and through places Davis couldn't even remember exploring in the citadel. Did Chibomon really go all this way? "Mmn-ssstop!" Chibomon slurred as he tore his mouth away mid-suckle. Milk trailed down his face but this didn't stop him from hopping in Davis' hand. "Right here, Davis!"

"Here?" Davis asked, stopping at the end of the hall and peering around the corner, looking to see if there were any Digimon guards in front of the only steel door in the hallway.

"Yeah yeah! This is the place," he confirmed. "Hurry, Davis!" Chibomon then took a daring leap from the boy's hands down to the floor and began his hurried waddle toward the door.

Davis rushed after his little Digimon, pressed against the wall of the corridor as if he was in some overdone spy movie. When they came upon the door, he leaned over to tug experimentally at the handle. When he realized the huge padlock upon it, he whispered, "Chibomon, can your bubbles melt that?"

"I can sure try." Chibomon hopped in place. "Lift me up, Davis."

Davis quickly picked his little Digimon up in his hands, holding him up to the lock on the door. "Ready, Chibomon? And... fire!"

Chibomon took a big breath, puffing himself out, and then let it all go in a fury of acidic bubbles. First breath exhausted, he took another deep inhale and blew out strongly again. Soon enough the padlock began to melt away, sizzling and burning with a mild odor of corroding steel.

"Good job, Chibomon!" Davis whispered excitedly. "Keep it up!" His encouragement continued until the lock faded away completely. And with a smirk, he grabbed the lock on the door and tried again to swing it open.

Chibomon was squirming excitedly, that is, until the door creaked open. A cold rush of air met them, practically freezing, and the room inside was pitch black. The tiny Digimon shrunk back in the boy's hands, not liking the feeling he was getting from inside. "I... I don't think this is the place..."

"Then what could it be?" Davis asked, putting one hand over Chibomon protectively as he shouldered inside. He tried squinting his eyes and get them used to the darkness so he could see just what was inside.

Once his feet landed on the icy metal floor, a series of dim lights flickered on. Each set of five or six lights illuminated the rows upon rows of Digieggs. Each one brown with light tan feather markings on them. The only thing holding each individual egg was a metal bowl on a pillar that was rigged to stay at a constant freezing temperature. Chibomon sniffed curiously at one egg before whimpering sadly. "The baby inside isn't breathing..."

"They're all frozen..." Davis murmured, also looking saddened by the state of the eggs. Why weren't these ones in the hatchery? As his eyes scanned the rows upon rows, he suddenly raised an eyebrow. "They're all the same kind of egg. I wonder if this is a kind of Digimon the Kaiser... doesn't like?"

"But that isn't fair!" Chibomon cried angrily with tears rolling over his cheeks.

"No, it isn't..." Davis said with a deep frown. It was this sort of thing that kept him unable to completely trust the Kaiser. Who could do something like this? He went to the first row of eggs, standing near the door as he felt each one. They all felt like ice. "I wonder what kind of eggs these are."

"We hav'ta save them!" Chibomon said. He jumped down from Davis' hand onto one of the pillars. He fired his acid bubbles at the base of the bowl until it was disconnected from the freezing mechanism underneath. Chibomon then jumped over to the next one, doing the same thing. The tiny Digimon did this again and again as many times as he could until he was completely out of breath. It was disappointing to know his strength only lasted him enough for about twelve eggs. On the thirteenth he was still trying, but only managed a tiny sputter of bubbles that popped right after.

"Wait, Chibomon!" Davis called, eyes wide. "Chibomon, what're we going to do with all of them when they hatch!? If we put them outside, they're goners! But we can't leave them here; the Kaiser will know we're the ones that took them out..."

"I don't care!" Chibomon was crying as he kept trying to blow his bubble attack. "He can't keep them like this! It's the same as being dead..."

Davis nodded, biting his lip. He understood Chibomon's upset with the way the eggs were being treated. He thought for a moment before nodding his head, a grin spreading over his face. "Okay... we can handle this. We'll just sneak the eggs into the hatchery and hide them among the others. The Kaiser never even goes down there since he doesn't care, so I bet he won't even notice. And we'll just do a few a day so it doesn't look too suspicious." Smiling, he went over and picked up his little Digimon, wiping away his tears. "Is that okay, Chibomon?"

Chibomon nodded. "They'll get dark rings put on them... but it's still better than this."

"Hey!" a Gazimon barked from the doorway.

Chibomon shrunk. "Uh-oh..."

"Only the Digimon Kaiser is allowed in here! Where are your dedication collars?"

"Chill, bunny, mine's back in our room," Davis said with a whistle as he turned on his heel. "The Kaiser took it off me, so I don't think it's a problem."

The Gazimon flinched when it saw the boy's face. "Oh! Master Davis, it's you." Its red eyes closed as it took to giving a deep bow. "My apologies. I... didn't recognize you in this light. I'm sorry, but does the Kaiser know you're down here? This room is supposed to be restricted."

"Yeah, I've got three hours to roam around. It's cool," Davis said, shrugging his shoulders as he put Chibomon on his shoulder. "I've pretty much got full reign on all baby-related activities since the Kaiser doesn't really care about them, so this room should, logically, count too, right?"

The grey Digimon was silent, thinking, and then nodded. "I suppose so, yes."

Davis edged towards the door, trying to corral the Gazimon out and close the door behind him. "We'll continue tomorrow," he whispered to Chibomon before looking down at the other Digimon again. "Well, our time's almost up, so we're going to head back. Going on guard duty, then?"

"Yes sir." The Gazimon saluted before marching off down the opposite way. Chibomon sighed in relief, but not without casting a regretful glance at the closed door. "I hope they don't hatch before we come back. That's a terrible place to be born."

"It's still really cold in there, even if they aren't being frozen completely. I'm sure they won't hatch until they get someplace warm." Davis said, trying to reassure his little Digimon as he headed back towards Wormmon's room to drop him off.

"Wait... Where are we going?" Chibomon asked, looking confusedly at the doors that were becoming more familiar.

"Back, Chibomon. I don't want to get in trouble," Davis said with a sigh. "We can play in Wormmon's room until my three hours are up, but we're going to have to investigate that room again tomorrow. With that Gazimon wandering around there's not much we can do."

"But we have to keep looking for your Digivice!" Chibomon exclaimed. "Phooey on the Kaiser. He's mean to you anyway. Just stay with me, Davis! If we work together, I bet we'll find your Digivice in no time!"

Davis sighed a bit, smiling as he pet his Digimon. He loved Chibomon’s spirit, and he'd missed him so much. But... "We can't take too many chances, Chibomon. He's got goons crawling all over this place and he can take you away from me if we piss him off. I don't want that to happen."

Chibomon grumbled. "He's a big fat meanie."

Davis snickered, stopping as they came to Wormmon's door. "I just don't want to lose you again, Chibomon."

"Wormmon goes on a lot about Ken," Chibomon said. "He says the Kaiser needs healing, but I think he just needs a good kick in the butt!"

Davis frowned, hesitating with the door handle. "What does he mean by that?"

Chibomon wobbled from side to side. "I dunno... Something about him being really sick."

"Sick?" Davis quirked a brow. That was weird. "Maybe I should talk to Wormmon sometime."

"He might be inside," Chibomon said, turning and looking at the door. "Maybe he'll tell you the story about how Ken got sick. I'm not so sure I believe it ‘cause I don't think pollen can make you evil."

"Pollen?" Davis repeated with another confused look. Shaking his head, he shouldered his way inside the room, calling out, "Wormmon? You here?" as he did. Even if he didn't want to talk to the other Digimon, he never left Chibomon in the room alone.

Wormmon came scurrying out at the sound of his name. "Yes? Can I help you, Davis?"

"Yeah, I had a question for you," Davis said, as he placed Chibomon down and closed the door. He then came to sit on the floor in front of Wormmon, setting his elbow on his knee and his head in his hand. "What exactly made the Kaiser the way he is now?"

"Oh..." Wormmon's antenna dropped and his pincers clicked together nervously. "I'm afraid that's a rather long and sad story, Davis. You may not want to hear it."

"Really? Well..." Davis looked over his shoulder at a clock mounted on the wall. Were his three hours up yet? Did he have time? "I do want to hear it, but I don't want to make you give me the abridged version, either."

Wormmon nodded. "If you're willing to hear it, then I'll tell you. If only so you will understand."

Davis bit his lip, but nodded. He had time. "Alright, lay it on me," he said, turning back to Wormmon.

"It was many years ago," Wormmon began, "when Ken was just a small child. Few remember this, but there was a great fight between two very powerful Digimon. Diaboromon and Omnimon. Many children witnessed this fight at the time of its occurrence, and Ken is one of those children."

"That sounds really familiar," Davis said, looking up and frowning. "Oh!" Suddenly, he snapped his fingers, remembering who he heard it from. "Yolei! She saw that fight, too."

The insect nodded. "I'm sure a number of your friends did. Ken wasn't alone that day. A playmate of his named Ryo was there also. Your Veemon was the one to take both Ken and Ryo into the Digital World to fight a second Diaboromon who had spawned and set apart from the original, should its plan fail. Ken was left alone, however, as Ryo and Veemon went to fight the Diaboromon, which was easily defeated. Almost immediately after its defeat, the true enemy appeared. His name was Millenniumon. He revealed that Diaboromon had been a tool all along used to lure Ryo to the Digital World. Millenniumon destroyed Infinity Mountain, a cornerstone of our world, thus ripping it in two."

Davis put his other elbow on his other knee, leaning closer to Wormmon as he listened with great interest. He glanced over at Chibomon and frowned slightly. "So... Veemon had another partner before me? Do you remember that, Chibomon?"

Chibomon shook his head. "No, not really. I don't think Ryo counted. I was supposed to wait for the right child to come along. If Ryo was my Chosen Child, then I would still be with him, but I'm not. I went back to sleep to wait for you, Davis. You're my Chosen Child," he finished with a smile.

Davis managed a smile, reaching over to scratch the top of Chibomon's head fondly. But those words made his thoughts jump to another question, which he directed back to Wormmon. "What happened to Ryo, then?"

"Well, it was after the great divide that I met Ken in a forest. I explained to him that I was his partner and that it was my duty to guide and protect him on his journey. Ken wanted to search for Ryo, but I took him to see Gennai instead. Gennai is a wise old man who lived in the Digital World from the beginning. He is one of the rare human Digimon created in our world. We found out then that Ryo was on the other side of the divide. Ken didn’t want to be a Chosen Child at first, but I eventually persuaded him. It was at this point that the great game began. Ken and Ryo had to move in sync along the two worlds while gathering DigiEgg shards and clearing dungeons. They were able to communicate for brief periods through a limited gate. While on his side of the divide, Ryo met Millenniumon who said he could not be defeated by one power and that the door would never be open. It was then that a locked door appeared in Primary Village where Ken had originally been left alone upon coming here."

"Wow..." Davis murmured, sounding awed by the story. It was just the two of them fighting this big evil power? Not to mention, he knew how long ago that fight with Diaboromon was, so Ken must've been really little when he went on this first adventure through the Digital World. "So... did he get through it?" Davis asked.

"Eventually," Wormmon answered with a slight nod. "But not quite, either. You see, the door was a gateway to Millenniumon's heart. It was only opened once the DigiEgg of Desire was put back together. Ryo and Ken met once more in the heart of Millenniumon. While he showed favor for Ryo, he was very cold and rude to Ken. He even seemed to imply the barren wasteland of his heart was the same as Ken's own heart. I didn't want to believe that. My Ken was meant for the Crest of Kindness. His heart was full only of love and kindness for other people. I only wish Ken could have found his crest before it was too late." Wormmon's antenna drooped again. "A fierce battle ensued leading to the destruction of Millenniumon's body, which reset the Digital World. Unfortunately, with the last of his powers, Millenniumon released his Dark Spores. These spores were tiny physical manifestations of his evil spirit. Doing only what he knew was right, Ken pushed Ryo out of the way and took the hit from a spore. It buried itself deep in the back of Ken's neck where no one could get to it. After that... Ken started to change. He became incredibly sick and I had to send him home."

"Dark Spore?" So that's what Chibomon must have been talking about when he said something about pollen before. "So... if he got a manifestation of evil put into him..." Davis started, putting the pieces together himself. "Is... the Dark Spore the reason he's the Kaiser now?"

"Yes, exactly." Wormmon began pacing slowly. "You see, when I sent Ken home, I sent his Digivice with him. This was still during a time when there was no gate, so I couldn’t accompany him home. Ken must have forgotten when he passed between worlds. I learned later on that his older brother took the Digivice, claiming it as his own, and withheld it from Ken. Already suffering from the effects of the spore, Ken turned into a bitter child, harboring great jealousy and even hatred for his brother. It wasn't until, Osamu I believe it was, died in a hit and run. Ken fell into a deep depression after that. He retrieved his Digivice and used it to seek refuge in the Digital World, even though he knew nothing about it. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but the next time I saw Ken, his Digivice had transformed, turned black. And Ken... Millenniumon had taken full root, the evil consuming him, thus inspiring his title as Digimon Kaiser."

Davis sat up, running his hands through his hair as he tried to process everything he'd been told. "I had no idea," he said quietly. He always thought... His thoughts paused for a minute. Why had he thought the Kaiser was the way he was? Just born evil? Nothing better to do? He'd never been able to formulate a good reason. But this... "This explains everything," he said aloud, looking down at Wormmon again. "And... you haven't been able to figure out a way to get the Dark Spore out?"

Wormmon shook his head. "I've never gotten close enough to study his neck. Even if I did, though, I don't know of any extraction procedures to get it out. Aside from slicing the back of his neck open and digging around inside, but I would never subject Ken to that."

Davis frowned, nodding. "Right, right... That's all... really sad," he said as he slowly got to his feet. "I wasn't expecting a story like that at all."

"Ken isn't a bad person," Wormmon warbled. "He really isn't. He's just... sick is all."

Davis nodded slowly, only to look over at the clock again. "I should get going," he said quickly. "Thanks, Wormmon," he murmured, smiling a bit at the Digimon, and then turning to Chibomon and saying, "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Can't you stay a little longer?" Chibomon whined.

"I wish, Chibomon, but I don't want the Kaiser to get pissed at us. For your sake," Davis answered, crouching down and scratching Chibomon's head again. "I'll make sure to come earlier tomorrow to feed you, and hopefully I'll get more time."

Chibomon arched into the scratch and purred. "You promise?"

"Promise. I want to make sure you're safe, but I'm not going to abandon you in order to do it." Davis smiled, scratching his Digimon for a few more moments before he stood up and hastily checked the time again. "Now I really need to go. I'll see you tomorrow, Chibomon, Wormmon! Night!" As quickly as he said his goodbyes, he left the room, closing the door behind him before he ran towards the Kaiser's room. He was cutting it close, but he was sure he could run fast enough to beat the clock.

In his room, the Kaiser was sitting at his vanity, staring bored and lonely at his reflection. He had on a very large black t-shirt that hung off one shoulder and reached down to his thighs. The boy let his long hair down and was now brushing it with a soft-bristled hair brush. Silver handle in one hand, the other held up the collection of locks so he could reach all the way to the end. When done, he ran his fingers through that section and let it fall gracefully down the side.

Much less gracefully, Davis practically burst into the room. He closed the door, leaning back against it before he caught the Kaiser's gaze in the mirror. He breathed for a moment before conjuring up a grin, as if he hadn't just heard the other boy's incredibly depressing history. "Back," he announced, as if the Kaiser couldn't already tell he'd returned.

"And here I though a stampede of clumsy horses barged into my room," the Kaiser replied dryly as he took to brushing another section of hair.

"Sorry," Davis apologized, letting go of the door's handle to walk over, standing behind where the Kaiser was seated. "I wanted to get back in time."

"Did you have fun playing with your rat?"

"Don't call him that," Davis said with a frown.

"You're right; calling it a rat is too generous. It hardly looks like one. How about a leech or a germ?"

"Hey!" Davis snapped, his hands instinctively balling into fists, even though he had no intention of doing anything with them. "He's a baby... dinosaur... thing!"

The Kaiser nodded. "So a leech then."

"No!" Davis protested with a groan. "Why do you have to be so mean to him?"

"Why do you have to neglect me for him?" the Kaiser shot back.

"You said I could spend three hours with him!" Davis growled defensively. "And then I said I'd come back and I did! What's the problem!?"

"The problem..." the Kaiser said, remaining unusually calm as he continued to brush his hair, "is that you chose him over me in the first place."

"He's my partner," Davis argued. "Not to mention he's a baby right now. I didn't see him all morning because I was with you, and he was starving when he finally came here looking for me. So really, I chose you over him first, but I can't leave him alone for a whole day!"

"Memories or no, you're incredibly ungrateful, Davis. I could turn him back into an egg anytime I want, you know. I busted my ass taking care of you these past four years. You think you'd show some gratitude."

"I only asked for an hour or two," Davis now whined. "I want to make you happy, but he needs to eat and he doesn't have hands!"

Suddenly the Kaiser's hand jerked, yanking the brush with an audible ripping sound, and he was rewarded with a clump of hair in his brush. "My god, you have an excuse for everything, don't you?!" He then slammed the brush down on the vanity. "I have Digimon who can do that for you, Davis! With a simple command, I can have any of these Digimon do anything you need them to! Why do you think that is, Davis? Did you think maybe it was so you and I would have unlimited time together? Did you ever think that might be why?!"

Davis flinched slightly, but stood strong. "Chibomon doesn't like the mind-controlled Digimon," he said simply. "And I don't think I'm asking for much when I ask for a few hours with my Digimon. I'll spend the rest of my time here if you want me to, but I need to take care of him too."

"It's a _game_, Davis! Don't you get it?"

"What?" Davis breathed, looking confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"All of this!" The Kaiser stood, spreading his arms, making a grand gesture as he turned. "This whole thing is a giant game! We're in a game! You and I are players, Davis, as were the other children. We were each given a default pawn to play with and one controlling game piece that allowed our pawn to level up in battles. It's almost like chess, really!" The boy smiled. "I decided I wanted to be game master, so I started to play in a way that would win me the most pawns and the most spaces. Of course, to be game master, I also had to beat the other players. That's exactly what I did! It's all a game! Why do you care so much about inferior programmed pawn pieces? It's not even real!"

Davis looked confused by everything the Kaiser said. Even with what Wormmon told him, this sort of behavior just didn't add up. Why would he think it wasn't real? How could he possibly disillusion himself that much? "Was fucking with my life part of the game, too?" he asked suddenly and rather coldly.

"At first," he admitted, "but then I grew to love you and my desire to keep you stemmed from that." The Kaiser approached Davis and touched his cheek. "But we aren't even ourselves anymore, Davis. We're different people now. We died a long time ago and now this is what we've become."

Davis flinched slightly. "I may look different on the outside, but I'm still exactly the same on the inside."

The Kaiser frowned. "No, Davis, that's backwards."

"What? How?" Davis asked, even more confusion taking over his expression.

"Because inside us is what's different. Our outsides are still the same old tired forms. Can't you feel it?"

"No..." Davis said, knitting his brow together. "I feel like a total stranger in my own skin thanks to missing four years of my life, but my mind's working the same way it did back then."

"You must feel it, too," the Kaiser insisted. "Trapped in your own skin." He stepped back to look down at his own body, fingers ghosting over himself. "Raw power burning to get out. If only we could shed our mortal coils, Davis, and achieve our true potential. It was going to be the two of us, you know." Dark eyes looked back up again into brown. "I'd finally formed this world to my image. Now it was time to harness the new energy I had created to free us. It was the next step. We're meant for bigger and better things, Davis. We could be gods! Don't you see? There's a power inside us greater than we can imagine in these frustrating shells."

"Wh-what?" Davis asked, narrowing his eyes a bit. "Gods? I'm just talking about still feeling like I'm twelve," he said, his shoulders sagging with the weight of the Kaiser's sudden proclamations. "I'm no god material, I'm just a kid."

"Davis, you're not listening." The Kaiser moved forward again and cupped Davis' jaw in his hands. "I am the greatest being this world knows. I can do anything! I can make you a god. There's nothing in our way. No one power can stop me, Davis. I'm the ultimate divinity!"

Davis turned his face away slightly, frowning, and yet still retaining an impish tone as he asked, "But if it's all a game and none of it's real, how can you be a god?"

"Because then I'll win the game," the Kaiser answered simply. "I'm only game master right now. To win, I need to reach the final level of total control. Once I do that, no player will ever be able to come in and change everything. It will be my world. Real or not. I'll finally get what I want."

"Why do you want control of a world you don't think is real?"

"Because it's better than the alternative. That's why."

Davis watched the Kaiser's face for a moment, then put his hands up. "Alright," he said, the thought only then occurring to him that he still had to play nice with the Kaiser and give him his chance, and he was dangerously overstepping the line between being questioning and starting a fight with him again.

"Good. You finally understand, then." The Kaiser let his arms slip down to drape around Davis' shoulders. Then his body relaxed and practically slumped against the other boy. "I'm tired, Davis..."

"It was a long day," Davis responded, glad to have avoided the fight. The last thing he wanted to do was make the Kaiser angry. Before, it would just mean getting himself hurt, but now he had to think about Chibomon's safety too. So, his hands came to actually pick the Kaiser up and bring him over to the bed, another thing he did with relative ease that felt strange. There was no way he could do that four years ago.

The Kaiser leaned his head against Davis' chest while he was carried and then curled up beneath the blankets of his bed. "You'll sleep with me?" he asked, now getting that lonely look in his eyes again.

"Yeah," Davis said, brushing back the Kaiser's hair before walking around to the other side of the bed. He sat down on the edge as he started to strip off his shoes and socks. His shirt came off next, and then his jeans, so he was left in his boxers to sleep in. All of his clothing found itself piled on top of his shoes on the floor before he crawled under the covers as well.

The Kaiser moved closer once Davis was in the bed. He shifted right up alongside the tan-toned body, hand coming to hold a square shoulder and cheek resting on a warm chest. "Did I do good today, Davis?"

Davis swallowed slightly, but managed a light tone and a smile. This sort of behavior from the Kaiser was nice to see rather than the biting coldness of his jealousy. "Yeah, it was really amazing."

The pale boy managed a smile of his own. "Good, because I really want you to stay." His voice was beginning to mumble as he drifted off to sleep. "I love you, Davis..."

Davis inhaled sharply, his mouth running dry. He fumbled for a response, only then noticing that the Kaiser was drifting off against him. So he just reached his hand forward and stroked the Kaiser's hair, saying only, "Uh-huh..."


	8. Puwamon

Normally, in the mornings, the citadel was quiet. Maybe there would be the occasional sound of footsteps against the metal floors, but otherwise, silence. Davis would slip out of the hold the Kaiser unconsciously put him in in the middle of the night, awkwardly wiggling until he was free to go get Chibomon and bring him down to the hatchery for his bottle. But while he on the bottom floor heard nothing, those up on the upper floor were woken by the sounds of chirping. Chirping that started quietly, but soon got louder, the voices in the choir seeming to increase as the minutes ticked by.

The Kaiser frowned in his sleep at the incessant noise invading his ears. What was that? Chirping? What the hell was chirping at this hour? Finally, one dark indigo eye cracked open and looked around the room. Davis was gone, as usual. He got down on the floor to look under his bed where he found nothing. He checked under the vanity, behind the dresser, and even in the bathroom. Nothing. It wasn't until he went to the closet and opened the doors that he saw it. A small Digimon composed of nothing but brown and tan feathers with two huge eyes and a string tail was rummaging around on the floor. At first the Kaiser just stared, mouth agape, but then... A shrill scream.

The little Digimon squealed in surprise, its feathers fluffing up as it skirted out into the hallway. Even downstairs, Davis heard the scream. He jumped, nearly dropping the now empty bottle from his hands. "What the hell was that?" he asked, narrowing his eyes as he got up and put Chibomon on his shoulder, running upstairs to investigate. When he got to the Kaiser's hallway, his eyes widened to see tons of little feathery baby Digimon all over the hall. They were flapping their tiny wings and hovering around, perching on windowsills, and dominated most of the floor space. One found a place on top of Davis' head as soon as he entered the hallway. "Where did all of these come from?" he breathed as he prodded at the little baby Digimon, which chirped excitedly at him.

"Get away!" the Kaiser screamed. He came bursting out into the hall, hair frazzled, face pale as a sheet, a breathing in a panic. Dark indigo eyes widened at the sight before him. So many Puwamon... "You horrid little devils!" he shrieked. That's when the Kaiser raised the spiked dominatrix boot he'd grabbed from the closet and began beating the baby Digimon ruthlessly with it. "How did you even get out?! Die you monsters! Die! Die! Die!"

Davis gasped, eyes going even wider when he heard the cries of pain from the baby Digimon as the Kaiser beat them with his shoe. "Hey!" he barked, dodging his way through the feathered crowd to try and grab the Kaiser's hands and stop him. "What're you doing?!"

"What does it look like I'm doing, you idiot?!" He fought against Davis, continuing to beat each Puwamon until one by one they pixelated back into DigiEggs.

"Davis!" Chibomon cried into the boy's ear. "Those are the same ones from the freezer!"

The Kaiser dropped his boot to pick up an egg, which he looked upon with wild eyes. "I'm going to do what I should have done in the first place." With those words, he threw the egg at the wall as hard as he could. The DigiEgg shattered, bursting to dust which failed to reform. A true death. Not missing a beat, he picked up another egg and drew his arm back, ready to throw it as well.

Davis jumped when the DigiEgg hit the wall and quickly tried to grab the Kaiser's arm to stop him from throwing another one. "Wait, wait!" he pleaded, now attempting to wrestle the egg back from the Kaiser. "This is crazy! Is it because they're all the same kind of Digimon? You shouldn't kill them just because of what they are!"

The Kaiser turned on Davis. "Don't you know what they turn into, Davis?!"

"Um, no?" Davis asked, looking surprised. The little fluff-ball still on his head looked anything but threatening. "What could possibly be so bad?"

"Puwamon turn into Crowmon!" the Kaiser screamed right in the other boy's face.

Davis was quiet for a moment, before looking confused. "And what's wrong with Crowmon?"

"Crowmon are terrible, horrible, awful creatures!" The Kaiser grabbed the front of Davis' shirt. "Their eyes can pierce into your very soul, picking you apart! Their feathers are an unholy black! They're like the night with no moon or stars... A dreadful lonely black! They have teeth that could rip your flesh in seconds! Talons that could rip you limb-from-limb! They're flying devils, Davis! I won't have them in my world!"

"But... you have Digimon that look more like devils than crows do already," Davis pointed out, as the Puwamon atop his head crawled down the back of his neck and soon found its way into his loose pants pocket, hiding inside undetected.

He released Davis' shirt, now in wrinkles. The Kaiser shook, a cold sweat on his face and neck, and still ghostly pale. "No... No... Crowmon are worse. I won't have them. I won't!" He stepped on an egg causing the shell to crack under his bare foot. "Without Puwamon there won't be any Crowmon!"

Most of the other Puwamon scattered, and the sounds of controlled Gazimon, Gizamon, and other Digimon scrambling to chase them down were now echoing through the halls. Davis flinched when the Kaiser stepped on one of the eggs, and quickly began to collect the rest of them in his arms. "D-do you have to destroy the eggs? Can't you put them somewhere like you did with the Digidestined's eggs instead?" he asked, trying to sound innocent, since he knew exactly where he could suggest the eggs be put.

"I tried that! I put them all in the freezer room! They were as good as dead in there, but obviously it didn't work! This is the only way to get rid of them!"

"M-maybe you should put some locks on it or something?" Davis suggested, now holding the eggs and backing away from the Kaiser to keep him from destroying any more of them. "I'm sure once the rest of them are caught and turned back into DigiEggs, the other Digimon are just gonna put them back in there, anyway."

"The door _was_ loc--" The Kaiser froze. That's right... The door was locked. Heavily. There was no way the Puwamon could have gotten out even if they did hatch. Someone must have opened the door. Someone who wanted to see the Digimon set free. Someone who was not a fan of how things were done. Someone who would always be defiant despite the promises they made. "You!" the Kaiser shrieked at Davis. "You broke into the freezer room! It's your fault all these vermin escaped!"

"I-I didn't mean to! I thought it was something else!" Davis stammered, backing up a bit more as sweat started to roll down the side of his face. "Honest!"

But the boy already snapped. The Kaiser screamed as he ran at Davis and tackled him to the ground, the eggs scattering everywhere. "That room was off limits! Regardless of what was inside, you should not have broken in! A lock means stay out, Davis! Or are you too stupid to understand that!" Suddenly his fist came down on the other's face. Then again. Again and again and again... "Why do you have to be so disobedient?! Is it because you hate me? Why do you hate me, Davis?! Why do you hate me! Why!"

When Davis had been knocked down, Chibomon fell from his shoulder and rolled across the floor. Now he was watching in horror as the Kaiser beat his boy without mercy. His tiny body shook with anger and the pure desire to protect his boy. Something in him sparked and suddenly Chibimon was there looking more determined than ever. "You leave Davis alone!" he barked and used his strongest hop attack to knock the Kaiser away.

Davis had his eyes closed against the blows, but suddenly he heard a very changed voice and his eyes opened, full of disbelief. "Chibimon?" he asked, sitting upright and smiling widely when he saw the little blue and white Digimon standing defensively in front of him. "You Digivolved!" he said excitedly. His face started to turn red where the Kaiser hit him, and when he went to say something else, he coughed, blood splattering across the floor. He gasped, but soon realized he'd just gotten a cut on the inside of his cheek, so he put his hand over his mouth.

"Little rat! I'll get you out of the way first and then your precious human is all mine," the Kaiser said, reaching for the spiked boot.

"No more!" Chibimon barked again. "Hop Attack!" he lunged forward, tiny body harboring a lot of strength, and knocked the boot away.

"How dare you!" the Kaiser snarled while holding his bruising wrist.

"Hop Attack!" Chibimon knocked his shoulder, throwing him off balance. "Hop Attack!" In the stomach to knock the wind out of him. "Hop Attack! Hop Attack!" In the face for retribution. In the side for punishment. "Hop Attack! Hop Attack! Hop Attack!"

"Chibimon, that's enough!" Davis suddenly called out, grabbing his Digimon around his tiny waist, even though he knew Chibimon would be wriggling to attack the Kaiser again. Even after he'd had several punches dealt across his face, Davis didn't like watching his little Digimon attacking the Kaiser.

Chibimon did try to squirm free, but Davis was stronger. "He has to learn!" the little blue Digimon insisted. Red eyes glared venomously at the crumpled body of the Kaiser. "He has to learn he can't push us around!"

"I think he got the message," Davis breathed, still doing his best to hold Chibimon back.

Chibimon stopped struggling at that point and just snorted at the Kaiser. The other boy still wasn't moving to get up, but his shoulders were shaking ever so slightly as the sound of soft sniffles and whimpers filled the air.

Davis looked over at the Kaiser, frowning deeply. "Oh, jeez..." he sighed, looking down at Chibimon and then around at the scattered eggs. "Chibimon, do me a favor," he said, bringing the tiny Digimon close to his face so he could whisper into his ear. He noticed tiny feathers sticking out of his pocket and bit his lip. "Take this little guy to Wormmon's room and put him in your bed. You're gonna take care of him... and find some other Digimon to put these eggs back, okay?" When he was done, he put Chibimon down on the ground and shifted so his back was to the Kaiser, so he didn't see the little feathery baby Digimon Davis produced from his pocket and placed in Chibimon's little paws.

"I'll do it, Davis," Chibimon said with an affirmative nod and holding the Puwamon securely. "But are you sure you'll be okay on your own?"

"I'll be fine, Chibimon. Just go do it," Davis said, jerking his head towards the hallway Chibimon needed to take to get back to Wormmon's room.

"Okay, okay," he sighed. Chibimon gathered up the eggs as well, getting them all in a row, and proceeded to push them all down the hall and around the corner. Red eyes glanced back one last time before the two boys were out of his sight.

Davis let out a gentle exhale as he rubbed at the back of his head. What was he going to do with that one last Puwamon? He guessed he'd figure it out later. Done with caring for one baby and immediately on to the next, it seemed. When he was sure Chibimon was out of sight, he turned around again and looked back towards the Kaiser. "I am sorry, y'know. I didn't mean to freak you out like that," Davis piped up unsurely.

"I find it hard to believe," the Kaiser said through sniffles and quiet sobs, "that anything you do anymore isn't on purpose. You're going to do everything you can until I let you go. Make my life hell, right? Well good luck."

Davis groaned, shaking his head. "I didn't know that those eggs were frozen because the Digimon inside freaked you out. How could I?" he countered, crawling over to where the Kaiser had crumpled on the floor. "I didn't do it on purpose."

"Well I'm sure you didn't set them free by mistake, either. Liberation is never an accident." As Davis came closer, the Kaiser curled further into himself. Unspoken fear.

"Well, it sorta was," Davis said, scratching at the back of his head. "Chibomon just sorta got upset and started busting stuff up, and I guess we left the door open by accident when we left and the Gazimon must've not closed it so it got really warm. We didn't go in there meaning to do that, though."

The Kaiser made a wet choking sound before trying to quiet himself. "Then why did you even go in there? It was heavily secured. You had to have forced your way in. Clearly you were up to something."

Davis bit his lip, knowing that anything he said was going to make the Kaiser angry. Think of a good excuse... Eventually, he just sighed. "Okay, I'm not gonna lie," he started, even as he formulated his story in his head. "Chibomon said he thought that it might be the room you put my D-Terminal, and I..." Think... "I just wanted to see if my friends ever sent me any messages, y'know?"

"Well it wasn't in there, was it?!" The Kaiser finally pushed himself up and glared at Davis, revealing where his face was already darkly bruising. "You said you were going to give me a chance, but you're still going around trying to find a way to escape, aren't you?! You lied to me!"

"I wasn't trying to escape!" Davis argued, scrambling to his feet as well. "The D-Terminal wouldn't let me go anywhere! I just wanted to see!"

"You were going to contact them! You were going to send for help! You can't fool me, Davis... You were going to tell them you were still alive. Tell them to find a way to get to you. Then they would take you away from me!"

"How?! You destroyed all of the gates anyway! I know that they can't get here! I may not be smart, but I'm not stupid!" After shouting that, he stopped, looking pensive, but then shook his head. "That's not what I meant."

The Kaiser shook his head. "No, you're infuriatingly clever, Davis. So much so that I had to nearly reduce you to a dimwit with the spiral just so you would cooperate. It was all 'Yes, master' this and 'Yes, master' that. You could barely hold your own thought for longer than a second. I tried to be generous and give you more freedom to think. I gave you the moon and that stupid river, but look what it got me. Despite all my efforts to control you, you still managed to think for yourself. 'I want to go home. I want to love you. I want to be real.' Well I sure hope to hell you're happy now, Davis, because all of this is thanks to you and your thinking."

Davis crossed his arms, pouting in an unimpressed manner. "I don't think total control over someone's a balanced relationship. I mean really, you talk about me putting in effort, but you took a really quick fix, too." He then uncrossed his arms and threw them out to either side of him, like he was presenting something. "Maybe you could try adjusting to me like a normal person! If you like me so much, work with me here! Trying to control me all over again isn't gonna get you anywhere."

The Kaiser flinched when Davis threw his arms out. When he realized there was no intention for violence, he retorted: "I'm the Digimon Kaiser! You're in my world. I shouldn't have to adjust to anything!"

"Well I'm Daisuke Motomiya, and I'm stubborn, so there," Davis said, putting one hand on his chest and the other one on his hip.

The Kaiser was silent for a minute, until he breathed in through his nose and just screamed at the other boy. With that, he stormed back into his room, slamming the door so hard it bounced back open.

Davis closed his eyes against the scream, putting his hands over his head and flinching when the door slammed. When he noticed it was open again, he trotted over to it, promptly stepping inside. "Not cool," he grumbled, as he closed the door after himself.

"Not cool? _Not cool?_" The Kaiser spun on his heels to face him. "You want to know what's not cool, Davis? The fact that your little rat nearly tried to kill me."

"He was trying to protect me!" Davis said back. "What did you expect when you assaulted me!?"

"Not this!" he shouted and lifted his shirt to show the big black and purple bruises on his body. "Learn to control him or he gets a dark ring!"

Davis bit his lip, then put his hands up. "Alright, alright, fine, I'll talk to him," he said quickly.

"Good." The Kaiser moved to sit at his vanity. His hair was a terrible mess and he just couldn't have that. Brush in hand, he took to working all the knots out and smoothing the strands down. When that was done, he pulled it back into the standard tight ponytail. The Kaiser observed his reflection and turned his head this way and that. He was about to stand up when a few strands fell into his face. Frustrated, he tried smoothing them back into place but they just fell loose again. "Why does nothing ever go right?!" the Kaiser shouted and grabbed the scissors from the front drawer to cut the hairs clean off. It seemed to be something that happened often.

Even though Davis wasn't feeling bold after the Kaiser yelled at him, it was simply against his nature to keep quiet as he watched this whole thing. So, at the end of it, he asked, "Why'd you grow your hair out? It kinda makes you look like a girl."

"You wanted me to."

"Me?" Davis asked, as he slowly approached the vanity. "Why?"

"How should I know?" Dark eyes stared strangely at his own reflection. "I let it grow a little too long once and was about to cut it, but you stopped me. You insisted I looked nice with longer hair and would like to see me grow it out. So I did. It made you happy."

"Hm," Davis hummed, now standing right behind the Kaiser. "Wonder why."

The Kaiser shook his head slowly. "You would spend hours brushing my hair, running your hands through my hair, braiding my hair. It was one of the few things I never asked you to do. You just... wanted to. When I allowed it, you smiled."

Davis frowned a bit, scratching at his chin. Then, he reached forward and took the ponytail in his hands. "Wow, it's soft," he said quietly.

Now the Kaiser nodded. "You... You said that often. You always sounded awed... Like it was magic or something." He choked through a strained smile. "You were always so sweet, Davis."

"You're really lonely, aren't you?" Davis asked forlornly, as his fingers gently ran through the tight ponytail.

"I don't want to be all alone here. I... I'm scared, Davis. I can't be by myself."

Davis sighed quietly, still looking at the dark strands as they passed through his fingers. "I can understand that," he said.

"Then stay with me."

Davis swallowed slightly, then said, "I told you, one shot. I'm... not going anywhere."

"You're staying?" The Kaiser turned in his chair to look up into brown eyes. "It was the city I made, wasn't it? You liked it enough to stay. I did good."

"Well, yeah, I do appreciate that, it's really cool, but..." Davis looked off to the side, then down into the Kaiser's dark eyes. "The reason I'm staying is more about you than that."

The Kaiser seemed surprised. "Me?" the boy asked quietly. "Wha... What about me?"

Davis scratched at the back of his head, shrugging his shoulders. "I dunno, I mean, you did take care of me all this time, and it's pretty obvious you really want this to work out, so like..." He stumbled over his words as he tried to vocalize what he was thinking. "I'd feel really selfish if I didn't even give you that chance I promised. Plus, you're a bit different than I remember."

"I feel different," the Kaiser admitted, casting his eyes down. "You're my only constant, Davis. I need you around. I feel like... I'd go crazy without you. Like I'd be eaten alive by something scary."

Davis just stared at the Kaiser for a moment. It was still so surreal that anyone felt that way about him, let alone the Kaiser. The Kaiser who he'd once respected, and the Kaiser that did something to him so long ago that it made him start to change inside. Changes he didn't recognize back then, but he'd apparently grown into during four years he couldn't remember. As he thought, his hand let go of the Kaiser's hair and slowly slid along the line of his jaw. He swallowed again as his callused hand came to gently cup under the Kaiser's chin. And then, after another moment, he leaned down and kissed him.

The Kaiser sighed almost silently. He tilted his head into Davis' hand, cherishing the rough skin that touched him so tenderly. Indigo eyes fluttered shut just cherishing the feeling. But when their lips met, the Kaiser gasped softly and his eyes flew open. Despite the surprise, he didn't pull away or fight back. Instead, he leaned up into the kiss, reciprocating, and his eyes fluttered shut again.

The kiss remained for a few more moments, only lips pressing gently against lips, before Davis slowly pulled back, his own eyes only half-lidded. "As far as I remember," he said quietly, "that's my first kiss."

The Kaiser inhaled softly, licking his lips. "That... felt like a first kiss. You've never kissed me like that before, Davis. I... I didn't know you could."

"I didn't know I could either," Davis responded, blushing and glancing to the side.

"It was really good. Did... Did you like it?"

"I'm still really confused," Davis admitted, licking his lips now as well. "L-let me make sure," he offered weakly, before he leaned in and very gently brushed their lips together again.

The Kaiser met the second kiss just as gently. It was the first time he ever treated a situation delicately. He was careful, slow, tender, and quiet; like feeding a rabbit without scaring it away. He did venture to touch Davis' face with his fingers though.

Davis inhaled suddenly when the Kaiser's fingers touched his face, but he didn't pull back. He continued the kiss until he had to breathe, not moving very far from the kiss and allowing his lips to hover over the Kaiser's, so his breath came out in short, unsure exhales over his lips. "Wh-what am I supposed to do now?" he asked, unsure.

"In all honesty." Dark eyes looked into brown. "Whatever you feel most comfortable with. If you feel like being done... You can be done."

"O-okay," Davis said, straightening up to full height again and carefully removing his hand. "Sorry," he added with a meek grin as he scratched at the back of his neck.

The Kaiser shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It's... It's actually okay. Really." He stood up, smoothing down his clothes, wincing at the bruises underneath. "I'm sorry to cut our new bonding time short, but there is some work I really must tend to, Davis. Will you be all right for an hour or so?"

"Huh?" Davis looked surprised, but then quickly nodded his head. "Oh, yeah, sure, I'll be fine."

The Kaiser tilted his head curiously. "Would you like to come watch?"

"Come watch what?" Davis asked.

"My work," he said with a small smirk. "I could never really show you before since you could never grasp any of it. You would just stand there and watch. Maybe now I can explain it to you. You can be more involved in the work I do in the Digital World."

Davis swallowed slightly, a little unsettled, but at the same time incredibly curious. "Well... okay," he said, taking a step closer to the Kaiser and nodding. "Sure, I'll come see."

The Kaiser smiled and grabbed Davis' hand. "Great!" He took off, dragging the boy through the many halls leading up to the console room he worked out of since all of this began. "I don't have a chair for you, but you don't mind standing, do you?"

"Can I sit on the floor?" Davis asked.

"I suppose if you really want to," he answered with a shrug. The Kaiser was never one for sitting on the floor. Dogs sat on the floor, not people. He set to work pulling up a multitude of screens, each one showing a different area and one grand-sized map of the entire Digital World with different colored markings. "This is it."

Davis looked up from where he now sat on the steel floor, leaning back on his hands. "Whoa," he said, looking at all of the different screens. "Did you always have this much... stuff?"

"Yes and no. I work with quite a few less monitors these days, but I have acquired much more over the years. While I was working to obtain the Digital World, I had to work acre by acre across the land; however, now that I own all of it, I can easily divide it up into regions in which I create specific control. You see?" He pointed to the different screens. "Here we have both ice lands, these are the three deserts, the jungle, the forest, the two mountain ranges, the tundra, the beach, and the ocean. And this one..." The Kaiser gestured to another screen. "Is us, in the heart of the Digital World. All regions lead to this single point."

"Jeez, I didn't know it was possible to see all of it like that... the most we ever got to see were some white and black squares," he said, looking from one screen to another. "Did you build this all yourself?"

The Kaiser nodded. "I did. It took a while, though, trust me. At first, all I could use was the grid imaging that you just referred to. Each square was an acre of land. I needed to keep a closer eye on things, so I developed this technology to make a detailed image of each region. I can track all movements and happenings through my system. Right now, I'm working on creating containment centers between each region, but it's a very tedious project."

Davis kept looking around at the screens, seemingly amazed even as he looked at the same one several times over. "I wouldn't have the patience to do all of that. That's pretty cool."

"Well it has been over a year in the making, but I have this desire to come in and work on it every day. The sensation is almost unreal. I can't sleep or eat until I come in and devote time to the project. Isn't that the strangest thing?"

"That's real dedication," Davis said, biting his lip. Even if he didn't agree with what the Kaiser had done, he couldn't deny how impressive it was.

"The hard part is corralling all the Digimon back into their appropriate regions," the Kaiser said. "I can't set up the containment centers until I do. So far, the barriers pushed them back, but so many of them are still too scattered. Save for the ocean and ice lands, of course."

"Why wouldn't they stay where you want them to? Don't you control them?" Davis asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, Digimon are still animals," the Kaiser explained. "You can train a dog and put a collar on it, but if you leave it unattended, it still has the means to wander away. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I guess," Davis said, frowning and scratching at the back of his head. "But Digimon like, talk and stuff. I think they understand more than dogs."

The Kaiser sighed. "You'd think so." He began typing on the console. "Of course it isn't really a matter of getting them to stay where I put them, but to get them all there. You see, the Digimon have naturally spread across the Digital World over the years of their existence. Even before I came here, they were spread out. I want to put them back where they belong. You see, I send out a signal to a handful of Digimon at a time telling them to return to their native region. When they arrive, I receive a signal from their ring or spiral letting me know they're there. Once all the Digimon of that region have returned, I will set up the containment center which will act like an invisible fence."

"Why do you want them like that?" Davis asked. "What's wrong with them being spread out? I mean, if they're living okay wherever they are, what's the harm in it?"

"I desire control, Davis, plain and simple. My world must have order in it. Plus, if I know where all the Digimon are, I don't have to worry."

"About what?"

"Attacks."

Davis tilted his head, looking confused. "But... who would attack you?"

"The Digimon, Davis. Come now. It's obvious." Dark eyes glanced at the boy on the floor. "I can't risk letting them roam free. I'd be putting myself in danger if I did."

"But... you control them," Davis said, scratching at the back of his head. "Why would they attack you?"

Hands stopped typing at that point. "Have you ever heard the phrase 'bite the hand that feeds,' Davis?"

Davis scrunched his eyebrows together and shook his head. "No, I don't think so..."

"Animals have the nasty habit of biting the hand that feeds them, Davis. A junkyard dog can be trained to attack strangers, but train it too well, and it will attack its master as well. You don't remember, but a few weeks ago, you and I were on the roof when a Flymon knocked me off. Luckily, you were there to pull me back up. I can't take risks like that anymore, Davis. Look..." The Kaiser pulled one of the screens over; the one of the citadel itself. "You see these colored rings? Each one is a barrier I've installed in the surrounding area. The furthest ring here, the blue one, about twenty miles out, is the minimum guard. Any Digimon with a ring cannot enter. If they do manage to pass through, this green ring here will stop them for sure. It's fifteen miles out. Next is the yellow ring at ten miles. It should prevent spiral Digimon from entering. The orange here at five miles begins severe preventive measures. If they cross this barrier, their rings and spirals will start to shock them unless they back out. Finally, the red ring here at two miles out will deliver a voltage so strong they will devolve to an egg. Putting all the wild Digimon back in their native regions with containment barriers should keep them away from the citadel in the first place, though. The rings are for emergency protection."

"But I guess they don't stop flying Digimon? I see..." Davis said, looking a little saddened. So even though the Kaiser had finally gained all of the power he wanted and had all of the Digimon under his control, even then he wasn't a perfectly loved leader. It was both confusing and almost worthy of pity. He'd worked for four years and even when he had what he wanted, complete control kept slipping through his fingers. He looked at the red ring and then glanced up at the Kaiser. "How many times has something gotten all the way to the red barrier?"

"Never, other than flying types," he replied. "I'm working on something to set up for sky protection. So far, nothing made it past the yellow ring. A few Mega with spirals made their way through the green, but that was a few months ago. I've increased the power since then. Unfortunately, I can't spread the rings farther out or increase the power much more than this. The farther the barriers are from the citadel, the weaker they become. I just can't feed that much voltage across vast distances."

"Uh-huh..." Davis mumbled, a sort of glaze coming over his tone that indicated that the Kaiser was starting to lose Davis' train of thought.

The Kaiser sighed. "I've lost you now, haven't I?"

"Kinda," Davis said, frowning a bit.

"Do you know how radio towers work, Davis?"

"No..." Davis said, shaking his head.

The Kaiser pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's all right. We can work through this. You listen to the radio in the car, right?"

"Right," Davis said, nodding his head.

"Okay, so have you ever noticed how a radio station starts to turn into static the further away you drive from the city? Like when you go on vacation."

Davis looked up at the ceiling pensively for a moment, but then nodded. "Yeah, okay..."

"Have you or haven't you?" the Kaiser asked again a bit more harshly.

"I have, I have," Davis said, putting his hands up.

The Kaiser sighed. "All right. The radio is nothing but sound waves broadcast out from a radio tower; however, those sound waves can only travel so far before disappearing. That's why you lose the radio station as you move further away from the location of the tower. More simply put, it's all like the ripples in a pond. When you drop a stone in the water, the ripples start small and close together. Think of that central point as the radio tower. Now as the ripples move out, they get further apart, right? And then they just wear out. That's the point where the radio station turns into static. Ultimately, this citadel is a radio tower and each barrier ring is a ripple of power. The power can only go so far before dissipating. Understand?"

Davis nodded his head slowly, and then a bit faster as he comprehended the idea. "Ohhh, I get it," he said, smiling slightly. "That makes sense."

"Very good, Davis. So, when I say that I can’t extend my protection barriers out any further than they already are. It's because..."

"'Cause they're fading out already," Davis concluded, before stretching and leaning back on his hands again. "Are you gonna quiz me on everything or what?"

The Kaiser shook his head. "I just want to make sure you understand."

"I get it," Davis said, nodding.

"Good." The Kaiser's attention went back on the console and screens before him. "Now I need to get to work. These Digimon aren't going to herd themselves." So his fingers began moving in a flurry across the keys. One by one little red dots started blinking on the screens and then the dots began to move, showing each Digimon as it followed the command back to its native region.

Davis watched the Kaiser work for a long while, but eventually, he leaned his head against the Kaiser's chair, bored with watching the little blinking dots, and that only led to him eventually falling asleep against it, lulled asleep by the lack of activity and the rhythmic drumming of the keys.

Hours passed as the Kaiser worked. He managed to secure the jungle and tundra regions, but there was still a lot of work to do. Oh well. Tomorrow was another day. "Davis..." He took to shaking the boy's shoulder. "Davis, wake up. It's time for bed."

Davis grumbled into the side of the chair, waving his hand around aimlessly. "I don't wanna go to bed, I'm sleeping..." he murmured nonsensically.

"Davis, you can't sleep in here. We sleep in the bedroom. Now come." The Kaiser grabbed Davis' upper arm and tried pulling him up, but the tan teen proved too heavy and his own strength proved too weak for the job.

It took a few moments of the Kaiser tugging fruitlessly on his arm for Davis to wake up, rubbing at his eyes and getting to his feet. He kept grumbling about being moved, but followed the Kaiser's lead towards the bedroom.

He just sighed at the other and shook his head. "Honestly, you're such a child sometimes." The Kaiser sat Davis on the bed before proceeding to remove his shoes, socks, and pants. All were folded neatly and placed in the laundry hamper. He then went back for the shirt. "Arms up, Davis," he instructed while pulling up on the hem of the shirt.

Davis yawned again, but complied and lifted his arms up so his shirt could be pulled up over his head.

The shirt was folded with the rest of the things. He contemplated attempting to remove Davis' boxers, but decided in the end it just wasn't worth the effort. So the Kaiser laid Davis back on the pillow, lifted his legs to pull the sheets back, and then tucked him in. The Kaiser proceeded to strip off his own clothing, folded in the hamper, and then climbed into bed next to his... Well, he didn't know what word to use right now. "Good night, Davis."

Davis looked over at the Kaiser with half-lidded mahogany eyes. After a moment, he smiled and moved closer to the other boy, letting one of his arms rest across the slim body next to him. "Night," he said, as he closed his eyes.


	9. Walking on Eggshells

Davis didn't know what was coming over him. He found himself dropping everything that once irritated and angered him about the Kaiser, and saw past it to someone he'd actually been getting pretty close to over the past few weeks. Of course, Chibimon wasn't too happy with this. He still insisted that Davis try and find his Digivice and escape. But while Davis did want to know where his Digivice was, he was more focused on staying and trying to help the Kaiser, like Wormmon kept telling him to do. It was hard to be in the same room with both of them; it was like he was being pulled hard by his arms in two totally different directions. And on top of that, he now had Puwamon to think about, who turned out to be an energetic and spunky ball of feathers that sometimes seemed to think he was Davis' partner instead of Chibimon. Even now, Davis was trying to catch Puwamon as he scurried from the boy's pocket, to atop his head, to his shoulder, to his other pocket while Chibimon watched in a huff. Eventually, Davis just sighed and left Puwamon alone, as the baby Digimon roosted in his hair and cooed happily.

Chibimon was not at all happy about their current arrangement. If the Kaiser wasn't taking Davis from him, then Puwamon was stealing all the attention. Who exactly was a Chosen Digimon here? Last time Chibimon checked, it was himself,_ thank you very much._ He watched Puwamon with a mean pout as the bundle of feathers came to nest on his boy's head. That would not do. So Chibimon padded around behind Davis and started to jump up and down, trying to grab the string-like tail that Puwamon let dangle down Davis' back. Wormmon was sitting in his nest watching all of this with a fond look in his eyes. "Davis, I can't thank you enough for all you've been doing," he said with a bow of his head. "I can't imagine it's been easy for you, but I knew you would be able to help."

When Chibimon finally hit the very ends of Puwamon's tail, the little Digimon fluffed up and sparks began to fly off his feathers. "Ow!" Davis hissed, feeling like someone full of static electricity just touched him. He spun around to see Chibimon as the culprit, and frowned at him a bit, only to offer his arms and hold the blue Digimon to his chest, scratching behind his ears so he wouldn't feel left out. Finally, when he had everything under control, he looked at Wormmon with a grin. "No problem," he said, as Puwamon, who'd started chattering angrily at Chibimon, finally settled back into the spikes of his hair, albeit still puffed up. "It's been a trip, but at least I don't feel as awkward around here anymore. Though..." he sighed, closing his eyes tiredly. "Sometimes it's hard to tell what'll make him happy and what'll set him off."

Chibimon grinned happily and began his own form of purring as Davis cuddled with him. _Now this was more like it._ Wormmon nodded sympathetically. "Ken was always an easy boy to please, but the Kaiser is far more temperamental. It's like walking on egg shells. Believe me, I know. I like to believe there is still a little bit of Ken left in there, though. Enough that if we can reach him with things he favors, his buried personality can calm the Kaiser's own temper and nerves."

Davis quirked a brow at that theory. "Yeah? What kind of stuff did he like, then?"

"Well..." His antenna twitched in thought. "Ken always loved sweet things, especially strawberries. He liked to hear how well he was doing. Ken didn't get a lot of compliments, so he always cherished any kind thought someone cared to say about him. He wasn't big on meats, but preferred soup and noodles, or even sushi. He was a simple child, actually. Ken appreciated the little things. A smile, a hand to hold, someone to talk to."

"Hmm," Davis hummed, looking pensive. "Noted," he said after a minute, grinning. "Hopefully he still likes all of that stuff."

"I don't see why he wouldn't, why?"

Davis shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno, he's just so pissed all the time. It's weird to think of him as a simple kinda guy."

"You shouldn't waste your energy, Davis," Chibimon piped up. "The Kaiser isn't any less evil now than he was a month ago. I think you've lost sight of the real objective here, and that's getting you home."

"Chibimon, think about it this way," Davis said with a sigh. "I already failed the Digital World once. Maybe if I help the Kaiser... I can help the Digital World."

"The only thing you're doing by helping the Kaiser in encouraging him!" Chibimon insisted. "If you make him happy, he'll just think you approve of what he's done. You need to show him that it's not right and you won't stand for it!"

"But if I do that, he might hurt you or put me back under mind control or something," Davis said, shaking his head. "It's too risky, Chibimon."

"Well if we just found your Digivice, then I could evolve and take him out," the little blue Digimon said with a grumpy frown. Wormmon made a small noise at this, clicking his pincers together. Blue eyes looked at Davis, asking if he'd really allow Veemon that chance.

"I dunno about that, Chibimon. The Kaiser's got an army to our... three-man army," Davis said, pointing to Chibimon, himself, and then Puwamon. "Ours isn't much. Even with the Digivice, he's still got every Digimon under the digital sun under his command and ready to bust in if anything goes wrong."

Chibimon puffed up his chest and suddenly burst up from Davis' lap, turning and brandishing a tiny paw at the teen. "When did you become so hopeless?!" he accused. "This isn't the Davis I remember! The Davis I knew would be doing everything he could to free the other Chosen Digimon and get back home! The Davis I knew would get his friends back together so they could fight the Kaiser as a team again! The Davis I knew... The Davis I knew wouldn't be kissing the enemy and sleeping in the enemy's bed!"

Davis seemed to deflate under his Digimon's words, a blush coming over this face as well. "Chibimon..." He put his head in his hand, leaning his elbow against his knee. "There's only so much one guy can take, Chibimon. We've been trying to do all of that for months."

His attitude immediately died. All of Chibimon's jealousy, anger, and spite was replaced by guilt. He'd been so frustrated that he didn't think about how Davis might be feeling. Sometimes he forgot how long Davis had been under control. To be trapped in time wasn't a big deal for Digimon. They hatched and were still the same. But Davis wasn't like that. Davis grew up into a person he probably didn't even recognize, and all Chibimon had done was make demands. "Davis..." he said softly, little paws coming to rest on the boy's leg. "I just don't want to see you get hurt."

"I know, Chibimon, but I don't want to see you get hurt, either," Davis said as he picked the Digimon up and put him back in his lap. "I know it's not like me, but I'm gonna take Wormmon's advice on this and walk on eggshells. If we're not careful everything will just fall apart and we'll be back to square one."

"But Davis, if we do find your Digivice, does this mean you still won't use it to get the other eggs out and then go home?" Wormmon shifted nervously in his nest while Chibimon was talking. "I want to see you safe at home. Once we all escape together, we can come up with a better plan, right?"

"I don't know, Chibimon," Davis said, putting a hand on his head, which made Puwamon pounce on his fingers playfully. "It depends on how everything is going. If we need to leave, we'll leave. If not, it'll be our backup plan."

Chibimon was quiet. He took to curling up in Davis' lap and laying his head against the teen's toned stomach. "I wish things were like they used to be," he squeaked softly.

"I know, Chibimon," Davis murmured quietly, once more scratching between the Digimon's ears. "It would make things a lot simpler, that's for sure." As he spoke, Puwamon noticed the dejected tone of Chibimon's voice, and crawled down Davis' arm before hopping down onto his leg. The baby ball of feathers observed Chibimon's sad expression and then wiggled over to him, chirping before pressing his fluffy body against Chibimon's side in a gesture that was as comforting as something with no appendages could manage.

Chibimon gasped softly when he felt the brushing of feathers against his body. He hardly expected Puwamon to come down and comfort him. At first, he didn't know what to do, but in the end, the little blue Digimon just smiled and draped himself over the fluffy Digimon with a cute smile on his face. In the midst of all the comfort going around, Wormmon had a look on his face like he was about to explode. "I can't do this anymore!" he suddenly shouted.

Davis looked up suddenly, eyes wide. "W-Wormmon, what's wrong?" he stammered, not having expected the outburst from the normally calm Digimon.

"I had my orders, but I can't keep lying to you," Wormmon confessed. "I know where your Digivices are. All of them. I've known where they are for years!"

Davis' jaw nearly dropped. Even Puwamon looked up curiously, even though he had no clue what was going on. "What?!" Davis gasped, leaning forward. "You knew where they were!?"

"You have to understand!" Wormmon insisted. "Ken is still my Chosen Child and my loyalty is to him. If he asks me to help, I can't say no. But... I can't go on with this lie anymore. Ken... He hid the Digivices in the one place he knew no one would ever look."

Davis raised an eyebrow, suddenly no longer mad or shocked, but rather just curious. "Ever? Where?"

Wormmon got up from his nest, grabbed onto it with his claws, and pulled it away. There, in a hole in the floor, were the Digivices. All of them.

Davis gaped stupidly for a moment before smacking his forehead with the palm of his hand and groaning. "I never woulda guessed..." he grumbled. Then, after a moment, he sighed and reached his hand out, unable to get up with the two Digimon on his lap to get his Digivice back. "Are the D-Terminals there, too?" he asked quietly.

Wormmon nodded. He took each Digivice out one by one, setting them on the floor. He then removed a panel in the floor beneath them to reveal the D-Terminals. "Everything is here..."

Davis' hands came to shakily grab the blue and white Digivice and its matching D-Terminal. He held them in his hands for a moment, unsure of what to feel as he looked at the still shiny surface, untouched from dust thanks to its hiding place. After a moment, he sighed slightly, but still smiled at Wormmon. "Thanks," he said. Even though he felt torn, he still couldn't be mad at Wormmon for concealing the Digivices while they ran all around the citadel looking for them. Wormmon was still just too loyal to Ken to betray him so easily. Davis turned the Digivice over in his hands a few times before handing it down to Chibimon, and then hastily flipped open the screen of the D-Terminal and tried to turn it on.

Chibimon took the Digivice and bounced excitedly on his toes. "I can evolve with this!" he said in showing the device to Puwamon.

"I'm sorry, Davis," Wormmon said sadly. "I would have shown you sooner if I thought I needed to. I just knew if I returned them to you right away, you’d escape the first chance you got. I needed you to give Ken a chance. I had to try."

Puwamon cooed curiously, rubbing his little face against the side of the device. Davis nodded as Wormmon spoke. "I understand," he said, his eyes lighting up when the D-Terminal booted up. Obviously, he couldn't contact anyone, since all of the D-Terminals and Digivices lay on the floor before him, but he began to press buttons on the device and check and see if there were any messages on it. His own lie piqued his curiosity.

_'Davis, where are you? You missed class today.'_

  
_'Did you go fight the Kaiser by yourself again? You idiot.'_

  
_'Davis, this is Kari. We're starting to get worried about you. Contact us, please.'_

  
_'This isn't funny anymore, Davis. Come out of hiding.'_

  
_'We're serious, man. Stop fooling around.'_

  
_'Davis, it's been two weeks. Where are you? Your parents are flipping out.'_

  
_'Chibimon is starting to get sick. You need to come home.'_

_'Davis, are you hurt? Are you in danger? Message us.'_

  
_'The police stopped looking, but we won't give up. Hang in there.'_

  
_'If you're getting these messages, give us a clue. Are you in the Digital World?'_

  
_'The Kaiser is getting stronger. We need you.'_

  
_'Davis, please...'_

  
_'Davis, where are you?'_

At first, Davis smiled a bit at their assumptions. But as his thumb continued to hit the button to scroll down through the messages, his face fell. Guilt quickly overcame his expression as he soon realized how much time must have been spent looking for him. He swallowed hard as he read the last two messages, so short and hopeless that they appeared on screen at the same time, and suddenly snapped the D-Terminal shut.

Chibimon heard the panel clap on the D-Terminal and he looked up. His face fell and ears drooped when he saw the look of total guilt and despair on Davis' face. He set the Digivice down so he put his paws around the boy's arm in a hug. Or at least the closest he could give to a hug. "They looked every day. They wanted to find you no matter what," Chibimon said quietly.

Davis nodded gently. He believed Chibimon when he told him that, but it hit him like a ton of bricks when he read those messages. "I can't fail them this time," Davis said determinedly, his free hand making a fist. "I need to save the Digital World... whatever that takes."

"So..." Red eyes looked up, hopeful, but also ready to hear what he might not like. "Are we going home, then?"

Davis frowned a bit, but shook his head. "This is our backup plan. I still want to see if I can either convince the Kaiser to stop, or get the DigiEggs free." He looked down at the Digivice and D-Terminal after picking up the white and blue device. "One way or another, we'll have the means to help the Digital World again. But if anything goes wrong, we'll go back to the real world."

Just as he thought, it was the answer he didn't want to hear. Chibimon wouldn't argue though. He trusted Davis to know what he was doing. Davis was clever like that. "Okay," Chibimon said with a nod. "But if he lays one hand on you, I can't promise I won't fight back."

"And if he tries to hurt you guys, we're leaving," Davis said, offering his Digimon the most convincing smile he could. "But for now, we're gonna save the Digital World." He then placed the devices back down with the others, and noticed that Puwamon sat himself on top of the red and white Digivice that he knew was Yolei's. "I wonder..." he pondered curiously. "What if the Kaiser doesn't like this kind of Digimon because it can get through his defenses?" He then snapped his fingers, formulating a plan in his mind. "Maybe if we help him get to his Rookie stage, the two of you can finally crack that glass case!"

"That's a great idea!" Chibimon squeaked and jumped excitedly. "Me and Falcomon will have that case open in no time! Only..." He stopped jumping and put a paw to his chin. "I don't think Puwamon being able to fly is why he doesn't like them. I think he's scared of them."

"Is that what their Rookie form's called?" Davis asked, smirking as Puwamon began to spin around, trying to get comfy on top of Yolei's Digivice. "He said he doesn't like Crowmon. But I don't see what the big deal is, he's got stuff crawling around out there that's way freakier than some bird."

"He's right," Wormmon piped up. "Ken is terrified of crows."

"Why?" Davis asked, scrunching his nose up. "Crows can't do anything. Now if he was scared of tigers, I'd understand. But crows?"

“When his brother got hit by a car, it took a while for the paramedics to arrive, and well... Obviously it takes much longer than that for a human to become carrion, but crows gathered along the powerlines regardless. Intrigued, I suppose. Ken was also so small at the time that his toddler imagination played up the horror of it all. He couldn’t help picturing the crows picking his brother apart right there in the street."

Davis made a face like he was about to be sick. "Oh man... that's nasty. No wonder he doesn't like them. That's gross," Davis groaned.

"Gross!" echoed a tiny chirp of a voice. Davis raised an eyebrow, glancing around before looking down at the little ball of feathers at his feet. "Gross!" Puwamon repeated, his tail feathers fluttering.

Chibimon gasped delightedly. "It can talk now!" He jumped down from Davis lap and waved his paws excitedly. "Hi! Hi! Hi!"

"Hi!" Puwamon repeated after Chibimon, the tiny wings on either side of his face flapping excitedly.

Davis quirked a brow as he watched. "I didn't even realize he had a mouth under all of those feathers..."

Chibimon just laughed. Next, he pointed at the teenager. "Davis! Davis! Davis!"

"Davis!" Puwamon repeated, hovering in the air for a second with an excited flap before he landed back atop the Digivice.

Davis laughed at the little chirping Digimon, and, happy for a change of subject, turned to Wormmon to ask, "Do they all start learning to talk this quickly?"

"It depends on how much attention they receive," Wormmon explained. "You've been taking excellent care of him, so his data is developing much faster than those in the wild."

Chibimon put his paws on his chest. "Chibimon! Chibimon! Chibimon!"

"Ch-ch-... Ch-..." Puwamon stammered, before ruffling his feathers cutely and chirping, "Chibimon!"

Davis looked pensive at Wormmon's words. "I know he's not a Chosen Digimon, but do you think he'll be able to get past the Rookie level quickly because he's with me?"

"Digivolve beyond Falcomon? More than likely, no. It's very, very hard for a Digimon to reach Champion without being a Chosen, and even when they do, it takes years," Wormmon explained. "However, you can speed up his evolution up to Falcomon. Regular feeding and parental type attention evolves a baby to In-Training very quickly. From there, if you train him and Chibimon together in controlled battles, you can get him to Falcomon quicker than if you were to just leave him alone."

"Well, it's no Champion stage, but I'll take it," Davis said, grinning. "Once he gets to In-Training, we'll start... well... training." He then glanced at his Digivice, and then back at Wormmon. "And do you think... my Digimentals will still work?"

The insect shrugged. "I don't see why not. Ken couldn't remove the data from your Digivices. I told him it was impossible, but he's too stubborn for that."

Davis picked up the device once again and turned it over in his hands. "Did he mess with the insides or something?"

Wormmon shook his head. "They can't be opened. He tried wiping them clean through the use of programs. It would seem your Digivices are nearly indestructible."

"Sweet," Davis said, grinning at the device. "I'd be in real trouble if it stopped working on me."

"Let's just hope they don't fall into the wrong hands again," Wormmon said.


	10. Living in the Past

Finding his Digivice only heightened Davis' mood. He now felt safe, knowing he had a plan of escape just in case anything went wrong. And with safety came boldness. Instead of sneaking around the citadel looking for the Digivices, he now spent his time training Chibimon and Puwamon, who soon Digivolved into Pinamon thanks to the effort. Together, Davis helped the two In-Training Digimon practice and train for when they would finally become Rookies. But, he was sure to balance his schedule to keep the Kaiser happy, as well, so he suspected nothing and maybe, just maybe, Davis could get through to him and avoid a struggle altogether. Today, after the discovery of Pinamon's Piripiri Spark attack, Davis called it a day early to head back to the Kaiser's room, hoping that he could pleasantly surprise him today with everything that Wormmon had been telling him about the last few days. He knocked on the door, only to open it anyway a second later. "Hey, you here?"

The Kaiser had been so pleased with Davis' cooperation that he didn't feel the need to suspect anything. Davis never gave him a reason to. Even better was that the boy wasn't giving him a hard time about the state of the Digital World. Maybe Davis had finally come to realize that everything the Kaiser had done really wasn't so bad. So all the Digimon were under complete control of a teenage megalomaniac who was so paranoid about their revolution that he kept them trapped in invisible electric fences. Could be worse. "I'm in the closet," he answered when he heard Davis calling for him from out in the bedroom. The Kaiser was currently stripping from some leather garb into something more comfortable.

Davis stifled a snicker and a joke as he entered the room. Focus. "I was just, uh..." Davis started, sauntering over to the closet door and standing on the opposite side of it, "Wondering if you'd like to go get sushi or somethin'."

"Sushi?" his voice chimed curiously. Almost immediately, the Kaiser poked his out from around the door. "Salmon sushi?"

"Sure, if that's what you want," Davis said, shrugging his shoulders casually.

"With tonkatsu and aioli sauce? And pork gyoza?"

Davis scratched at the back of his head slightly, grinning meekly. "If they have all of that stuff in digital Odaiba, sure."

The Kaiser ducked back into the closet where he rifled through all the racks looking for something to wear. He finally decided on his high neck, sleeveless number with the low cut black jeans that showed off his smooth stomach. He came bursting out of the closet and rushed to the vanity so he could redo the tight ponytail. "Ready!" the boy said when he was done nitpicking at himself.

Davis looked surprised at how excited the Kaiser was to go get sushi. He knew he liked it, but he hadn't expected that sort of reaction. "Alright, let's go, then." Again wracking his brain, he smiled and added, "You look good," before he turned to lead the way out of the citadel.

"You think so? It's so nice of you to notice, Davis." He followed the other boy out, jogging a bit to catch up and take hold of Davis' hand. "How did you know I loved sushi?" the Kaiser asked with a coy grin. "I try to not let myself eat it too much. I'd eat it all the time if I could. It's just so good."

Davis smiled, shrugging his shoulders again. "Lucky guess," he said, only to gesture with his free hand as the other one squeezed the one it now held. "Though I did notice you didn't look too thrilled when we went to eat anywhere else."

The Kaiser shrugged. "Guilty." When Davis squeezed his hand, he laced their fingers together. The door to the outside opened and the couple stepped out onto the sidewalk. He'd been working on the people. There were still repeats in design, but they happened less frequently since he'd made a few more. The Kaiser had even programmed in some animals, but they were always seen in the same place. An orange cat on a terrace, and a dog tied up at a park bench where its master was reading the paper. Faces were a bit more defined as well with noticeable features, but all the eyes were the same brown, the noses either turned up or down, and the mouths sort of just opened and closed when talking.

Davis learned to ignore the people mostly, though he complimented the Kaiser on the changes. They were still weird, but his mood had been soaring too high to care much about what the digital people were like. He led the way to the small sushi shop that they hadn't set foot in once. It was just too humble and neat for Davis to notice it much, unlike the large, busy establishments and their faster food that he seemed to prefer. He glanced around at the small, hand-carved wood tables that sat low to the ground and the cushions beneath them to kneel on, and then noticed a sign with 'Please sit and wait for service' scrawled across it in hand-written kanji. "I don't even remember this place," he admitted, glancing around at the traditional artwork that adorned the walls.

"Probably because you never cared to notice it. This sushi bar was established when Odaiba was first built in 1853. All the defense soldiers working on the island could come eat here for a traditional home-style meal," the Kaiser explained. "I'll admit I always found it very quaint and attractive." He pulled Davis along to a table near the wall. He kneeled down on one side and gestured for the other boy to sit across from him. "They're going to serve us tea and miso soup, Davis. It's customary in a traditional dinner. Put your napkin in your lap and don't slouch."

"Um... okay," Davis said, sliding his knees under the table and awkwardly unfolding his napkin, not realizing a pair of chopsticks were going to fall out of it. He gasped and grabbed them before they could hit the floor, and placed them down as he put his napkin on his lap like he was told.

"Do you know how to separate the chopsticks, Davis?"

"That I know," Davis said with a laugh, taking the chopsticks apart with a gentle snap. He then pouted a bit. "What, you think I can't figure out chopsticks?"

The Kaiser simply shrugged. "Some people try to take them apart at the top instead of at the bottom. Of course that's how you end up breaking them. Oh! Here's our tea." A woman in a sea foam green kimono with her hair done up in the traditional shimada style came to their table. She knelt down, setting a tray on the table, and proceeded to pour both boys a cup of tea. The yunomi were painted in blue and brown, and glazed for stability. The Kaiser bowed his head and the woman did the same before getting up and leaving. "You might want to blow on it. Could be hot," he warned, wrapping his fingers around his yunomi and also letting it sit in his flat palm.

"I've never had tea like this," Davis said, frowning at the tea as he spun the yunomi around a few times on the table. After he blew on it a few times, he lifted it to his lips and took a taste. He again made a face before putting it back down on the wood table.

"You don't like it?" the Kaiser asked with one brow raised.

"It's kinda tasteless to me," Davis said, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth.

All he did was nod. The Kaiser called the woman back over and mumbled something into her ear. She giggled with a nod of her own and hurried off. When she came back, she had a small glazed jar with her and a small spoon. She set them on the table, bowed, and left. "There's honey in there," the Kaiser said. "Just lift the lid and dip the spoon in. Don't let the honey just drip into your tea, though. Put the spoon in your drink and stir gently until the honey dissolves."

"Um... okay," Davis said, nodding. He did as the Kaiser told him to, though he overdid it slightly on the honey. Still, when he tasted the tea again, a grin came over his face. "Now that's what I'm talking about."

"I thought you might like that," the Kaiser said with a smile. Soon they were served the soup which the Kaiser told Davis he could just drink from the bowl if he liked; however the Kaiser preferred the deeply carved spoon provided for them. Finally, they ordered. The Kaiser asked for a special called The Snake Charmer, which was hamachi, salmon, kanikama, green onion, and spicy tuna wrapped in smoked salmon skin that was slowly toasted. The waitress also gave him two bowls of tonkatsu and aioli sauce for dipping.

Davis, on the other hand, just sort of shrugged and asked for whatever they had to offer when it was his turn to order, and in return got a sample plate of various types of sushi the restaurant offered. He took his chopsticks in his hand and started picking at the different types, deciding what he did and didn't like. He almost started to talk with his mouth full at one point, but, remembering the Kaiser's numerous scolding about his tendency to do so, swallowed before he asked, "So, how's uh, work going?"

The Kaiser wiped his mouth clean before answering. "It's going really well, actually. I've managed to secure three more regions. The beach was much easier than I anticipated. I was also surprised to see how few Digimon actually inhabited the desert. The forest is the most recent of the three. All I have left are the mountain regions, but getting the Digimon to settle is difficult. It seems territory is a touchy subject out there."

Davis nodded as he listened, nibbling on the different types of sushi. "I don't think I've ever been up in the mountains," he said after a few moments of pondering. "Only through the forests and a desert once or twice."

"A lot of the larger birds and dinosaur types live in the mountains," the Kaiser explained. "Of course, they turn into a volcanic region to the south, but I still consider it the mountains since there a lot of them around. Naturally, you'll find heat powered Digimon there. It wasn't hard containing that area since most of the native volcanic Digimon never left. They need the heat, I suppose."

"That makes sense," Davis said, nodding. "I still think it's weird that you need to round them up like that, but you're doing a good job of it. Your dedication's admirable," he said, taking words straight out of Wormmon's mouth simply for a lack of knowing how to properly rephrase them.

The black-clad boy smiled. "You're so cute when you use big words, Davis."

Davis looked up, surprised, and then snorted with a bit of a meek smirk as he went back to his sushi. "Yeah, yeah."

Then the smile fell into a frown. "Davis, normally when someone compliments you, you respond with a 'thank you.'"

"Hm?" Davis hummed, looking up with a confused look. "I thought you were makin' fun of me."

"No..." There was just a touch of hurt in the Kaiser’s eyes. "I'm trying to have a nice dinner with you, Davis. Why would I ruin it by making fun of you? That would be rude."

Davis still looked confused, but then scratched at the back of his neck sheepishly and smiled a bit. "Sorry... thanks. It's just usually when someone says something like that, they aren't serious."

"Well I was being serious," the Kaiser huffed. "You're welcome." With that, he picked up his tea and took another sip, eyes deliberately closed now.

Davis glanced around guiltily at that reaction. That wasn't what he meant to do. "Hey, um," he started, "do you like..." What was that? He peered at one sort of sushi he hadn't particularly liked on the first try, now with three untouched rolls sitting at the corner of his plate. "Eel?"

The Kaiser offered a weak shrug. "It's not my favorite, but I don't dislike it. Dipped in a good sauce I could probably enjoy it," he answered.

Davis looked at the small sauce bowls on the table and dipped one of the rolls into it, before lifting it back up and leaning across the table, offering it to the Kaiser with an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm immune to puppy eyes," the Kaiser warned as he leaned in to take the eel roll from between the chopsticks. His tongue came out first, tapered slightly, and wrapped around the sushi. He then drew it into his mouth slowly, licking pale lips as he did so. "Not too bad... I think you're missing out, Davis."

Davis watched this carefully and felt his tan skin heating up a bit, licking his lips and offering another eel roll as he said quietly, "Yeah, I definitely am."

The Kaiser hummed, amused. He leaned in again for the next eel roll. This time he noticed as the sauce began to drip, so he licked it up slowly, using only the tip of his tongue. Satisfied that a mess had been avoided, the boy coiled his tongue around the roll once more and drew it slowly into his mouth.

Davis swallowed dryly, now putting a hand over his hot cheeks. What in the world was going on? The poor boy looked completely lost as his still young mind confusedly felt the effects of teenaged hormones on his body that he was not at all used to.

The Kaiser smirked. "Are you all right, Davis?"

Davis hastily swallowed and moved his hand to offer his best convincing smile, though this exposed the blush still creeping across his cheeks. "Fine, I'm fine," he said quickly.

"No, I don't think you are." The Kaiser called again for the woman who came hurrying over the best she could in the fitted kimono. She leaned down as he whispered in her ear. She giggled, something she might be programmed to do, and nodded. "Come Davis. Don't dawdle," the Kaiser said in standing and following the woman.

Davis looked surprised, quirking a brow as he shifted out from under the table, only to realize rather embarrassedly that he didn't want to move from where he was sitting. But the Kaiser and the woman were leaving and he groaned as he got to his feet and trotted after them.

She slid open a very old-fashioned door made of wood crossings and rice paper. When the two boys went inside, she giggled with another nod and slid the door closed. The room was a bit small, perhaps only seven feet by seven feet. The sliding door cornered with a rice paper screen on one side and a grey-red wall on the other side. A small table sat against the far wall under a wall scroll of a tiger. Four white paper lanterns hung in each corner from the ceiling, tiny candles flickering inside. "Having some trouble with your big boy feelings?" the Kaiser finally asked with a coy smile.

Davis looked confused when they entered the small room at first, but at the Kaiser's words, the expression was replaced with one of embarrassment again. "A-apparently," he said, folding his hands in front of himself and biting his lip a bit. "I mean, I guess I totally missed puberty..."

"Understandable," he replied with a nod. "Maybe a little exploration can lead to discovery." And the Kaiser moved forward, sauntering with a purposeful sway of his hips. He wrapped his arms around the taller boy's neck and grinned. "I think my tongue is what caught your attention, so..." The Kaiser pushed up on his toes and licked behind Davis' ear.

"Ah!" Davis gasped, his eyes closing as his blush grew at the sudden contact. He swallowed again and laughed nervously, just because he had no idea what else to do.

The pale boy grinned as his tongue lapped at the warm skin of Davis' neck. "How do you feel?" he asked and clamped his teeth on the other's earlobe.

Davis gasped again. "My body's doing weird stuff," he whined quietly.

The Kaiser’s hand snuck its way down to boldly cup the front of Davis' pants. "Down here?"

"Nn! Y-yes, down there," Davis breathed, his voice sounding like he was being tortured.

"Good," the Kaiser chuckled. "You're supposed to." He guided Davis down onto the floor where they sat across from each other. "Now tell me, Davis. Do you like what you're feeling?"

Davis made something of a whining noise as the Kaiser moved away and sat him on the floor. "It's just weird," he said, embarrassed. "I don't really like it, it's uncomfortable..."

The Kaiser chuckled again. "That's because you've gotten bigger than your pants are willing to hold. I was quite intrigued with you, Davis. You really did grow into a big boy over the years."

Davis scrunched his eyebrows together as a confused pout took over his lips. "Wh-what?"

"Just watch." The Kaiser reached forward, using slender nimble fingers to unbutton Davis' pants and slid the zipper down slowly. A careful tug on the boxers and... The Kaiser grinned delightedly as he always did when Davis' ample sex was revealed. "Such a big boy," he purred.

Davis' eyes widened a bit as he leaned back on his hands. "Whoa," he breathed, only to laugh nervously as he glanced back up at the Kaiser. "Talk about changes..."

"Indeed," the Kaiser replied a bit dreamily. "I half expected it, though. Even as a youth, you were granted more generosity than most. I suppose you just never gave it much thought. You certainly did blossom, though. Now..." He wrapped his fingers firmly around Davis' length and pulled slowly. "How does that make you feel?"

"Hnn!" Davis gasped with surprise, leaning his chin down into his chest and his fingers coming to claw a bit at the floor. "Weird," he breathed first, blushing. "...Good," he added quietly after a moment.

The Kaiser grinned. "And this?" His hand abandoned the boy's length so both could slip up under his shirt and thumb the two dark nubs there.

"Nm..." Davis breathed. He didn't seem as embarrassed by that, just rolling his head back and his toes curling a bit. "G-good," he repeated, breathy.

"Tit for tat, Davis," the Kaiser said, pulling away. He leaned back on his own hands while staring coyly at the other boy. "Now find something on me you want to touch."

Davis slowly inched towards the Kaiser, feeling awkward in his partially undone clothing and exposed self while staring down at the Kaiser. "I-I guess..." he started, unsure, his hands coming to rest on a pale stomach. Davis' rough palms then traveled up the Kaiser's torso slowly.

The Kaiser hummed. "Very good, Davis. I like that."

Davis licked his lips, leaning down as his hands moved upwards. Soon, his fingers were doing the same to the Kaiser as had been done to him a moment ago as some sort of dormant memory seemed to open up in his mind, and his lips brushed over the soft skin of the Kaiser's stomach.

Now he inhaled sharply through his teeth. "Davis..." The Kaiser leaned forward. One arm wrapped around broad shoulders while the other reached down to begin stroking again, his face pressed into a warm tan neck, kissing.

"Ohh..." Davis at once shivered at the multiple places the Kaiser touched, his eyes closing against the overwhelming feeling. Still, his hands continued to work, and his mouth even found occupation to stifle his contented groans by nibbling and biting gently at the exposed skin on the Kaiser's shoulder.

"Do you like it?" the Kaiser breathed heatedly into Davis' ear.

"Y-yeah," Davis gasped, his body shivering again when the Kaiser's hand tightened a bit as it moved. Davis could feel sweat starting to roll off his forehead as he leaned into the crook of the Kaiser's neck, now started to pant and groan with less inhibition.

The Kaiser tilted his head back long enough to move to the other side of Davis' neck where he suckled on the skin feverishly, hand moving faster as he did so. "Davis... I've never done this for you before. Remember it. Cherish it."

Davis opened his mouth to answer, but all he could vocalize was a long, satisfied groan. His fingers dug into the Kaiser's sides, toes curling, eyes closing, and he managed a few more panting breaths before his breathing hitched, and the boy released into the Kaiser's hand with another choked moan.

The Kaiser sighed softly when Davis was done. Pulling his hand back, he proceeded to wipe it clean on a nearby cushion. He didn't pull away, but instead remained sitting and sort of cradling the other boy against him. "Do you feel better?" he asked quietly.

It took a few moments for Davis to regain his breath, panting slightly before he sighed into the Kaiser's skin, "Y-yeah..." His hands clutched a bit harder at the Kaiser's sides, and suddenly, he'd again bitten gently on the skin he'd been moaning against and began to suckle on the paler skin.

The Kaiser flinched slightly. "D-Davis...?"

Davis lifted his lip slightly, brown eyes looking upwards. "It's not fair if only I get to... r-right?"

"Davis..." The Kaiser couldn't help the infernal dusting of pink on his cheeks. "You aren't ready yet..."

Davis couldn't help but grin slightly when he saw that. "I have to be fair," he said firmly, as his hands started to slide down the Kaiser's sides and his fingers soon found themselves trailing the hem of his pants. "Do you not want me to?"

The Kaiser shook his head sternly. "I just don't need you to, that's all."

Davis looked confused now, everything stopping as he glanced up again. "But do you want me to?"

The Kaiser huffed stubbornly. "If I needed it, then yes, I would want you to."

Davis frowned a bit, but lifted his hands away and leaned back a bit with a nod. "Okay," he responded, as he slowly started to re-adjust his clothing and clean himself off.

"It's not your fault," the Kaiser said perhaps a bit too casually. "My needs are something you aren't ready to meet yet. Not even willing to, I'm sure. Let's just... work on you, all right?"

"Yeah, okay," Davis murmured, making faces at his own sticky fingers, fixing his shirt and rather awkwardly pulling his boxers back up and refastening his jeans. Then, brown eyes glanced up into indigo for a very brief moment. "Thanks."

The Kaiser returned the gaze with a weary sort of smile. "You're welcome, Davis." He then leaned forward and kissed the boy on the cheek. "Thank you for dinner. It was very delightful. I had a good time."

Davis nodded, looking at the floor as he blushed and very shakily got to his feet. "I'm glad," he said, eyes then glancing around the very small room before he said, "Is there anything else you want to do before we go back?"

"I feel like frozen yogurt," the Kaiser replied while tucking some stray hairs behind his ear. "I believe there's a place the next block over."

"Sure," Davis said quickly, still straightening out his clothing. "We can do that."

The Kaiser nodded. "Good." He walked to the sliding door and stopped. The Kaiser stood there for a few moments before staring at Davis and coughing bluntly.

Davis looked over at the other boy with a confused expression when he heard that cough. His eyes caught the staring ones and he only quirked a brow. "What?"

The Kaiser sighed heavily. "Really?"

"What?" Davis repeated.

"The door, Davis?"

"O-oh," Davis stammered, quickly walking over to the door and taking it by its side before sliding it open.

"Thank you," the Kaiser said, though it had more of an infliction of 'Finally...' and walked out. He waved to their waitress so she knew they were leaving. Once at the main door, he again stopped and waited.

And again, Davis made his way over to the door and opened it for the Kaiser. As the other boy walked through, he looked back at the waitress, who looked at him with a look that was far too knowing for a digital person to wear. Davis bit his lip, embarrassed, before following after the Kaiser.

"You really do need to learn better manners, Davis," the Kaiser said as they walked down the street. "I'd be hesitant to take you out in public again until you do. And it's not like they're such hard things to remember. Just little policies here and there. I had trained you with them fairly well, but obviously all the lessons are gone from your head now. Looks like some reconditioning is in order."

"Well sorry," Davis said, with a bit more childish snark than he intended as he sped up a bit to walk next to the Kaiser rather than trail behind him.

"Well it isn't that hard, Davis," he returned. "A gentleman always opens the door for his date. Ever a toddler knows how to use Please and Thank you. And when you're in a formal setting, you need to be on your best behavior." The Kaiser glanced over his shoulder. "You aren't a pig farmer, Davis. I'm sure your parents raised you with a bit of decency."

Davis opened his mouth to retort, his face showing that he was obviously ready to start defending himself. But at the mention of his parents, the words died in his throat and he closed his mouth, looking down at his feet.

"Don't slouch, Davis," the Kaiser sighed, having totally missed the whole parent thing.

"'M not slouching," Davis responded in a mumble.

The Kaiser stopped in front of the other boy, turning to face him and brush his fingers under a Davis’ chin. "Head up, shoulders back, chest out... There, that's better," he finished with a smile.

Davis' back made a slight cracking noise when the Kaiser stood him straight up, and he sighed and said, "Thanks," as he winced, rolling his shoulders.

"You're a handsome young man," the Kaiser insisted. "You should present yourself like one. I know you aren't used to your new height, but standing tall is important. It makes you look proud and confident."

"Mm, it is hard to get used to," Davis said, scratching at the back of his neck as he decided to let the comment about his parents go. There was no point getting in a sour mood with the Kaiser; he either didn't notice or got counter-upset at Davis just for being upset, one of the biggest injustices in relationships ever.

The Kaiser nodded knowingly. "Don't live in the past, Davis," he said, implying a number of things without saying them, and then resumed walking. "At least you're taller than me know," he said with a small smile. "You must like that."

Davis was left standing there for a moment before he trotted after the Kaiser, catching up to him again a few seconds later. "Yeah, I guess that is kinda cool," he said with a bit of a laugh. "We were pretty close back in the day, though."

"Mhmm, but I think you still had an inch or two on me. Most people did. It was rather annoying. Ken was never as tall as Osamu and I think it bothered him. I just don't like being shorter because then people don't take me seriously. Such insecurities irk me, yet I can't seem to shed myself of them. Same with my fears." The Kaiser shrugged. "To err is human, I suppose, but that bothers me, too."

Davis seemed a little lost by the end of the Kaiser's little ramble, so he just shrugged his shoulders and offered, "Well, you're a lot taller now, too."

The Kaiser considered this and nodded. "I suppose I am. Thank you, Davis." It was about this time that they arrived at the ice cream place. The Kaiser stopped at the door and waited patiently this time, convinced Davis would be more punctual about it.

This time, since Davis was walking next to the Kaiser, he quickly reached his arm out and swung the door open.

The Kaiser smiled with a bow of his head and entered the little frozen sweets shop. There was a young man there with bleach blond hair set against dark brown eyes. Over his light purple t-shirt was an apron with a penguin eating a creamsicle on it. "Welcome," he recited. "What can I get you?"

"I want a double scoop of your strawberry frozen yogurt," the Kaiser answered without even having to think. "Put it in a cup with just a light drizzling of hot fudge."

Davis pressed his hands against the glass case displaying the different flavors. His eyes ghosted over the vanilla, and he thought for a moment before quickly shaking his head and pointing to some brightly colored flavor of yellow dashed with other colors; apparently simulating a birthday cake. "This. Waffle cone."

"One scoop or two scoops, customer?" the young man asked, not being able to distinguish genders.

"Two," Davis answered with hesitation.

"Toppings, customer?"

"Sprinkles," Davis responded, glancing up with a strangely serious look on his face, only to say, "Not chocolate, the rainbow ones."

"Yes, customer," he said with nod and then started scooping their ice cream.

The Kaiser offered a mild shrug. "I'm still working on their recognition software. Right now, all they know to call us is 'person' or 'customer.' I apologize if that... weirds you out."

"Could be worse," Davis said with a shrug, still looking at the ice cream. Obviously, he wasn't paying too much attention to the way the man at the register was speaking when there was ice cream involved.

The Kaiser couldn't help a smile on his pale lips. "You really like ice cream, don't you?"

"Mhm," Davis murmured, looking up at the Kaiser with a grin. "Ice cream's delicious."

"I guess we'll have to come back here this weekend," he said.

The young man gave them each their dairy treat saying, "Enjoy, customers."

The Kaiser chose a spot near the window where they could watch the people walk by. "I must admit, Davis. I've had a lovely time so far."

"Me too," Davis said, already licking at the ice cream he'd been given. He wasted no time in starting to suck down the frozen dessert. When he sat down across from the Kaiser, he already almost completely licked off all of the sprinkles.

The Kaiser laughed. "Slow down, Davis. You'll get an ice cream headache." He dipped his spoon into his own frozen yogurt and ate the stuff slowly, savoring the sweet of the fruit and the sweet of the chocolate together. The Kaiser took to sucking on the spoon during one particularly large bite, blushing and humming softly.

"Psh, I don't get brain freeze," Davis bragged as he continued to slurp down the cake-batter tasting ice cream. Of course, he did eat a bit too fast and eventually stopped with a hiss, holding his head. "Ow, damn..." He continued for a moment only to grin when the sting went away, and, not learning his lesson, went straight back to quickly eating the ice cream.

The Kaiser rolled his eyes. "Davis, honestly." He put his hand over the ice cream to get the boy to stop. "You can't enjoy it if you're just horking it down. Savor it. Here..." He offered a spoonful of the strawberry and hot fudge. "Try this, and actually take the time to taste it."

"But—" Davis whined, only to stop when the spoon was in his face. Not one to turn down free sweets, he did as he was told, though he prodded fun at the concept by taking an incredibly long time to part his lips, lean towards the spoon, and then close his mouth around the spoon.

The Kaiser watched, unamused by Davis' antics, but then smiled as he watched the other boy eat. "Does it remind you of anything?"

Davis swished the ice cream around in his mouth for a while before shrugging and swallowing. "Strawberries and chocolate?" he asked, just pointing out the obvious.

The Kaiser laughed softly. "Well yes, but not quite what I was looking for. That's all right, though. I'm sure it will come to you eventually." He moved his hand to let Davis back at the ice cream cone and resumed his own small bowl.

Davis looked confused, but offered his cone after a moment. "Mine tastes like cake batter. Wanna try?"

'I'll give it a try, yes." The Kaiser leaned forward and ran his tongue around the side of the treat. He pulled back, smearing the ice cream in his mouth, and then nodded. "Pretty good," he admitted. "Ice cream is terribly fattening, though. That's why I prefer frozen yogurt." The Kaiser lifted his paper bowl at the words. "Helps keep me in shape."

"Psh, you can eat whatever you want as long as you're active," Davis said with a grin. "At least I do, and there isn't an ounce of fat below my neck."

"No..." The Kaiser leaned forward with a grin on his lips and chin resting on the back of his wrist. "All the fat's in your head, isn't it?"

Davis thought for a second, running the Kaiser's words over in his head. "Ohhh," he suddenly murmured, "Is that what that saying means?"

The Kaiser just smiled coyly. "And what does that saying mean, Davis?"

"That I have a fat head?" The boy frowned at that. "I thought that saying was a compliment."

The Kaiser tilted his head. "Would you like it to be a compliment, Davis?"

"Well yeah, I thought she was just calling me skinny. Guess not," Davis mumbled, bringing his ice cream back to his lips and sucking on it from the top sourly.

Now the Kaiser frowned. "Who said that to you?"

"Some girl," Davis said with a sigh, waving his hand. "They don't like me very much."

One pale hand slammed down on the table. The Kaiser looked oddly enraged for a second before exhaling slowly and leaning back. "Well she sounds like a royal bitch," he huffed.

Davis looked surprised, leaning back a bit when the Kaiser leaned forwards. "Uh..." he started, only to laugh nervously. "It's really nothing. All girls pretty much treat me like that."

"It's an insult, Davis. Having a fat head means a person is dull and stupid." The Kaiser crossed his arms and legs at the same time. "You and I are close enough that we can trade jokes like that, but she had no right to make fun of you. You might not be book smart, Davis, but you're smart in your own right. I've seen intelligence grow in you over the years. You're very clever and are capable of understanding just about anything once it's been explained to you." He shook his head. "This girl, she.... She's the one with a fat head!"

Davis smiled, reaching across the table and patting the back of the Kaiser's hand. "Thanks," he said first, only to shake his head and grin again. "But really, I'm used to it. Girls just don't like me 'cause I'm obnoxious," he said, shrugging and leaning back in his chair.

"You'd be painfully boring if you weren't," the Kaiser said, now sounding calmer. "You might annoy the shit out of me sometimes, Davis, but I don't know what I would do without you around to cheer me up."

Again, Davis smiled. "Thanks," he said a second time. He licked at his ice cream a few more times, catching some that was trying to escape down the side of the cone, before he added, "You're pretty good company yourself."

Slim fingers began fiddling with his hair. "Well I _know_ I am."

Davis rolled his eyes, but still smiled. "Course ya do," he said, before he went back to intently stopping his ice cream from reaching his hand.

"...Davis?"

"Mhm?" Davis asked around his ice cream.

Indigo eyes stared into mahogany brown. "Would you call me ‘master’ if I... asked... you to?"

Those brown eyes flickered a bit, and he raised an eyebrow. "What? Uh..."

"Only on special occasions," the Kaiser explained. "Not all the time."

Davis glanced to the side, then looked back at the Kaiser. "I don't think we're there yet."

Dark eyes fell down to the table. "Oh, I see..." The Kaiser nodded meekly. "All right. That... That's okay."

"Sorry," Davis added, though he wasn't sure why he was apologizing, and looked at the table as well as he returned to his ice cream to occupy his mouth so he didn't have to speak again.


	11. Four Year Void

Both boys were quiet for a while as they ate in awkward silence. Davis insisted on being fair and pleasing the Kaiser earlier, but the dark-haired boy had become too accustomed to hearing certain things in the throes of pleasure, and now he couldn't get excited without them. Would it really be so bad for Davis to call him master when they were together like that? Just think of it like a pet name. That would be the excuse he offered, but it was doubtful the other boy would buy it. The Kaiser was about to speak when he heard a deep rumbling sound and the floor beneath them began to shake.

Davis gasped, looking down at the table as the spoon that had been provided for him and ignored began _clinking_ rapidly as it hit the tabletop. "Earthquake?" he asked, glancing outside.

"We don't get earthquakes here," the Kaiser replied. He stood up and wandered closer to the door. He was about to peer outside to see what was happening, but he screamed instead. "Davis! Davis, we have to run!"

Davis dropped what was left of his cone and rushed outside. "What's wrong!?" he gasped as he came up beside the Kaiser.

"No! No run!" The Kaiser turned on his heels with a stampede of Monochromon bearing down on him. "They've gotten through!"

Davis' eyes went wide and he at once turned and ran after the Kaiser, going as fast as he could. His own speed started to amaze him and he grabbed the Kaiser's hand to pull him along faster. "Where's the next ring?!" he asked, panic rising in his voice.

"It's five blocks away!" he shouted back. "We have to turn left up here!" The Kaiser tried his best to keep up with Davis. He was in good shape, but he was small and still tired easily. The boy stumbled just before the turn and cried out when he felt a sharp pain slice up the back of his leg. "Run just run!" he said, using Davis' hand to pull himself back up.

Davis looked over his shoulder when the Kaiser stumbled, and without thinking grabbed the boy around his waist, slung him over his shoulder, and kept running, to the speed that he was nearly sprinting.

The Kaiser yelped in surprise when he was thrown over Davis' shoulder. Sure, he didn't have to run on his own, but now he could see the Monochromon and how close they were. Red glowing eyes were wide and wild, their heads thrashing about, mouths foaming from exertion. He hated when their minds got so lost in the dark rings that they lost all common sense and truly were reduced to raging animals. "Run! Run!" he cried in panic. "Run!"

Just when the Kaiser was afraid they would be trampled, all the Monochromon collided and were thrown back. They all landed in a disorganized heap of roaring and kicking. "Stop..." he breathed. "Davis. Davis! You can stop!"

Davis didn't hear at fist until the Kaiser began to wriggle and scream for him to stop, and he looked over his shoulder to see the disoriented Monochromon pawing at the barrier. "Oh, man," he breathed, leaning forward slightly with a relieved sigh.

"Davis..." the Kaiser murmured. "My leg feels warm." The left pant leg was sliced up the back. Black material had done a good job of hiding the damage, but now there was blood dripping generously from where a Monochromon's horn ripped into his leg. "I think it might be hurt," he said, not being able to turn around and see while slung over Davis' shoulder.

Davis glanced down at the other boy's leg, suddenly hissing and biting his lip just from seeing the damage. "Jeez," he breathed, carefully sliding the Kaiser off of his shoulder only to put his arms under his back and the crook of his legs and hold him against his chest instead. "We've gotta get you back," he said, as he started to walk towards the citadel.

The Kaiser shook his head and started pushing against the other boy. "I'm fine. I can walk."

"No," Davis said, shaking his head. "You're gonna make it worse. Let me help."

"I'm not weak," the boy argued. "I can do it."

"I didn't say that. I said you're gonna make it worse," Davis said, shaking his head again. "Just let me help."

"It's just a scratch," the Kaiser insisted, though he was starting to sound defeated. "I'm fine..."

"I've pretended to not have broken bones, there's no use arguing with me," Davis said with a bit of a tired smirk.

The Kaiser just sighed, submitting. He relaxed in Davis' arms and allowed himself to be carried home. Davis adjusted his arms, holding the Kaiser a bit tighter before he continued. He was just glad the simulation of Odaiba had level streets, because if he had to walk across the desert-like terrain outside of the digital city, it would have been a real challenge. Finally, they came to the doors of the citadel, and Davis used his foot to open one of them and kept it open with his shoulder as he slipped inside.

"We should just go to my room," the Kaiser said. "I need to wash my leg."

"There's no like... medical supplies you want or anything?" Davis asked, even as he turned to climb the stairs towards the Kaiser's floor.

"I don't really know where they're kept," the Kaiser admitted. "I've never needed any medical aid before."

Davis looked surprised, but nodded and kept climbing the stairs towards the Kaiser's room. Soon they came out of the stairwell onto the proper floor, and he carried the Kaiser to his room and through into the bathroom.

The Kaiser had Davis set him on the edge of the tub near the faucet. He turned the water on, letting it get warm. He put his leg under the water after removing the torn pants. A terrible sound hissed through his teeth and the deep gash flooded with water, but he just shook his head and said, "There might be something in the linen closet over there near the corner. Bandages and ointment at the very least. I know Wormmon has a habit of keeping such things nearby in case I ever need them. I've just never bothered to look."

"Alright," Davis said with a nod, heading over to the closet to check. He found bandages and some sort of bottle that he assumed was to help, since it was sitting right on top of the roll of bandages. He brought them both over to the sink, setting them down on the counter-top.

Indigo eyes watched as red mingled with the clear water, turning pink as it rinsed down the drain. He kept it there until there was no more red, at which point he turned the faucet off and stood. The Kaiser didn't move at first, collecting himself, and then limped down the steps to come sit in his chair beside the counter. "I think it's good now." The gash was almost the length of his calf and nearly two inches across at the widest part. Thankfully, it was shallow. "You might as well wrap it so it won't get infected."

Davis nodded, taking the bottle and the bandages and crouching down in front of the Kaiser on the floor. He took the other boy's foot and set it on top of his knee, before extending the bottle upwards for the Kaiser to inspect. "Should I use this stuff?" he asked.

The Kaiser shrugged. "I suppose. Just try to be careful, Davis."

"Yeah," Davis said, unscrewing the cap and squeezing the ointment out onto his hands. He then rubbed them together and delicately touched under the Kaiser's leg, lightly running his hand over the gash to just gently cover it with the ointment.

"Ow!" Whatever it was, it stung at the open wound. "I told you to be careful!" the Kaiser snarled and slapped Davis clean across the face.

Davis flinched when the strike landed across his face. He whined gently and rubbed at the spot, which now turned red with a hand mark. "I was careful!"

Unintentional tears built up in indigo eyes. "Well it hurts!"

"This stuff always hurts when you put it on an open wound!" Davis retorted. "Haven't you ever gone to the doctor?" The Kaiser opened his mouth to snap back, but his breath died on his lips. The boy slumped in the chair and wrapped his arms around himself. Davis looked confused, tilting his head to the side. "What?"

"I haven't, all right? I don't know what it's like."

"You haven't been to the doctor? Never?"

The Kaiser shook his head. "Anytime Ken went, I wasn't there, so... No. I've never been."

"Oh," Davis said, glancing to the side before looking back. "Well, it's not that great. They stick you with needles and hit your knee with a little hammer thing," he said as he went back to rubbing ointment on the wound. "But, uh, the point was, this stuff always stings. Sorry, should've warned you."

"It's all right," the Kaiser answered quietly. "I shouldn't have yelled at you. I'm... I'm... ...sorry..."

Davis was surprised to hear the apology from the Kaiser, but he knew drawing attention to it would make the other boy regret letting it slip. So, he just glanced up and offered a gentle smile. "No worries," he said, before he went back to tending to the wound.

The Kaiser was well behaved after that. He waited patiently and quietly as Davis dressed his leg. When it was all done, he gave a silent nod of thanks before attempting to stand on his own again. "I need to reinforce those barriers. I may need to give up some distance, but clearly, they need more power feeding into them. This can't happen again. Can't."

"Do what you think is best," Davis said, standing up and offering his arm in case the other boy needed help balancing.

The Kaiser nodded again and tried to take a step. Too bad his leg didn't feel like supporting him. "Ah!" the Kaiser cried as he fell, luckily falling into Davis as he did so. "I don't like being this way."

"You can't help it," Davis responded, helping the Kaiser back onto his feet with his other hand.

"Shouldn't I just be able to walk it into being better?" he asked looking up at Davis.

"It's not a pulled muscle," Davis said, shaking his head. "It's a wound. You gotta wait for it to heal."

The Kaiser made a flabbergasted noise. "Well what am I supposed to do until then?!"

"Just... chill out, I guess," Davis said with a shrug. "Relax until it heals."

"I can't just 'chill out,' Davis! Didn't you see what happened today? They're out to get me. All of them! Digimon never sleep, and neither can I. Do you understand that? I have to keep my eyes on them because I know for a fact that they're watching me."

"Then don't leave the citadel!" Davis said, as he helped the boy back into his bedroom. "They can't get you in here."

"But if I'm not working, what's to stop them from getting in here?" the Kaiser asked a bit frantically.

"I'll help you up to the control room," Davis sighed. "Or you can get a Digimon to build you crutches."

"Tch, these Digimon wouldn’t know how to put Lincoln Logs together. Just... Just let me lean on you," the Kaiser insisted.

"Alright," Davis said with a nod. He then picked the Kaiser up and laid him down in his bed, and came to sit next to him on the other side, scratching at the back of his head. "This isn't really the end to the evening I was hoping for."

The Kaiser settled into the pillows, trying to get comfortable. "Oh?" He was already picking at the bandages on his leg. "And what kind of ending _were_ you hoping for, exactly?"

"One where no one got maimed, preferably," Davis said, flicking his hand from side to side as he orchestrated his ideal evening end in his mind. "And, y'know, like... walking home and then a happy, peaceful end. I'd like a good day to end nice more than once in a long while."

"It can still end nicely," the Kaiser insisted. "The day isn't over yet."

Davis glanced over as he murmured, "Yeah?"

"Well of course. You think I'm going to let a bum leg stop me? Davis, please, I'm better than that," he scoffed. The Kaiser leaned over to open the drawer of the night stand and rummage around inside. "Close your eyes," he said. Davis grinned a bit, nodding his head a little as he closed his eyes.

Noises were heard. A plastic cap clicking open. Something soft getting squeezed out. The Kaiser shifting against the sheets. He raised his finger, covered in strawberry fudge body topping, and slid it between Davis' lips. "Remind you of anything?" he purred.

Davis' tongue darted out quickly between dark lips, catching the flavor just on the end. He swallowed slightly, and one of his eyes cracked open. "It sorta tastes like... the ice cream from before..." he said quietly.

"Very good, Davis," the Kaiser purred again. "Does it remind you of anything else? Does it... spark anything in you?"

Davis' eye seemed to narrow, and he shook his head slightly, putting a hand on his head. "Very faintly... I... know I’ve tasted it before..."

The Kaiser just smiled coyly. "What if I did this?" He squeezed a bit more on his finger and spread the stuff from his chin to his ear along his jaw. He then gestured for Davis to lick it up.

Davis licked his lips slightly and swallowed hard. His hands came to hold the Kaiser's face, one on his one cheek and the other under the jaw, before he leaned in and gently licked along the trail he was left.

The Kaiser hummed softly and touched Davis' side. "Feel familiar yet?"

"I still can't put my finger on it..." Davis admitted when his tongue reached the end of the trail, breathing against the Kaiser's ear.

"Then you just need a little more reminder." The Kaiser spread a trail from his neck to down and across his collarbone. "Try this," he said smiling.

Davis moved his mouth to the Kaiser's neck, starting to suck on the skin along the trail he was given. His tongue and teethed teased the pale skin until he reached the other boy's collarbone and the end of the chocolate flavored topping, and he stopped, pulling back with a pensive look on his face as he licked his lips. "I... think I remember... something like this," he started, looking up at the Kaiser. "We've done this before."

"We have many times," the Kaiser replied. He smeared a surprise dot of fudge on the end of Davis' nose. "It was one of your favorite intimacy games. Probably because no one got hurt and you got to eat a special treat as well." The boy leaned forward and gently licked the tip of the tan nose. "The first time was on your thirteenth birthday."

"W-we did this when I turned thirteen?" Davis asked, suddenly looking uncomfortable. He pulled back his hands and sat upright, the sweet flavor left in his mouth seemingly turning sour.

The Kaiser shrugged. "It wasn't as bad as you're thinking. We never went below the belt. I had no interest in such a thing back then. Except for when you did my feet." Now he grinned. "That actually sort of tickled. Once again you were insistent, though, so I allowed you the opportunity."

Despite the Kaiser's assurances of the innocence in it all, Davis still looked uncomfortable. He usually did when the Kaiser brought up things he couldn't remember, memories lost in the four-year void of his mind. So, he shifted back onto his side of the bed, clearly wanting to be finished with the conversation.

The pale boy frowned sourly. "What the hell is your problem now?"

"That's just kind of weird for me, okay?" Davis responded, instantly not liking the Kaiser's tone of voice.

"Look, I'm trying to help you remember. The only way that can happen is if we talk to each other." The Kaiser leaned over Davis to see his face. "But every time we start to talk about it, you turn into a pansy."

"I'm not a pansy!" Davis growled, life rekindled into his limbs as he tried to push the Kaiser away by his chest.

"Well you sure as hell are acting like one!" the Kaiser retorted with a push back. "Get over yourself, Davis!"

"You're not the one who's been all messed up, so don't tell me to get over myself!" Davis snapped back, his hands turning into fists in his lap.

The Kaiser growled in frustration. "You're not messed up, Davis! Oh my god! I didn't scramble your brain or turn you into dog! You're fine!" He groaned. "If you'd stop being such a pissy drama queen..."

"I'm the pissy drama queen?" Davis asked incredulously, before snorting and crossing his arms, turning his back to the other boy. "Rich."

"Don't you dare turn your back!" The screech of a warn was the last thing heard before Davis was tackled face first into the floor. "What am I supposed to do with you, Davis?! First you loathe me, then you act like you're starting to like me again, you even kissed me! Now you're turning into this sour stubborn child again!" The Kaiser grabbed a fistful of cinnamon-colored hair and yanked backwards. "You like fucking around with me like this, don't you?"

There was a flash of black across Davis' vision as he slammed to the floor. He ground his teeth when his hair was pulled, and he pulled his arms inwards, put his hands flat on the floor, and pushed his body up with the Kaiser still perched on his back. "Get off me!" the boy demanded, trying to throw the Kaiser off by jerking his body to the side.

The Kaiser yelped when he was thrown back. Davis had never done that before, and it honestly surprised him. "I was only trying to make the evening special like you wanted!" he decided to say in his defense.

Davis scrambled to his feet, at first silent. He supposed that was true. He put a hand to his head, shaking it slightly. "I know, but... but you shouldn't bring up stuff like that. It's still really weird."

"You used to love doing all these things with me. So, the only reason I bring it up is because I think maybe you'll like the idea and want to try again," the Kaiser explained as calmly as he could. "You're sixteen now, Davis. Don't you think it's time to try being close with someone?"

"But I don't feel sixteen," Davis said, pulling at his own hair now with one hand. "I still feel eleven. This doesn't feel right."

The Kaiser stared at Davis for a long time before sighing and nodding. "All right, Davis. If that's how you feel, then... All right."

Davis seemed surprised, letting go of his hair. "You mean it?"

The Kaiser nodded. "Yes. Just... it's fine. I understand. It's fine." He crawled back over to the bed and gripped the sheets in both hands, hoisting himself back onto the mattress with one foot for support. He picked up the bottle and tossed it into the trashcan before sitting against the pillows again.

Davis edged over to the bed. "Okay... good," he said, sitting down on his side of the bed and scratching at the back of his head. He knew the evening was unsalvageable now. But maybe it was better that way.

"Good night, Davis" was all the more the Kaiser offered as he turned out the lights and laid down, back to the other boy, going to sleep.

"Yeah... night," Davis murmured, also lying down with his back to the Kaiser. But he could tell that he wasn't going to get to sleep too soon; he had too much to think about.


	12. Don't Cry For Me

The Kaiser noticed that Davis was missing more and more often these days. It seemed they'd been building a new relationship pretty well until their bombed date night last week. That's when Davis stopped coming around as often. Normally the Kaiser might not mind, seeing as how that would be time dedicated to working, but with his healing bum leg, he'd been left alone in a boring bed all day. Now he was up and around, albeit with a slight limp, and was on the hunt. The Kaiser would track Davis down and demand some attention. Now... if only he could find the boy.

Davis got up really early to train his Digimon, and they turned Wormmon's room into their own little arena where the green Digimon could watch. They spent so much time training lately that both of the Digimon finally reached their Rookie forms. Today, they were staging a scrimmage. Veemon almost knocked Falcomon over with a great V-Headbutt attack, and then Falcomon countered with his Kuchibashi Attack. "Nice shots, guys!" Davis whistled, a bit louder than he might have meant to. He just got fired up when he saw them coming along so well with their fighting skills.

The Kaiser’s ears caught the whistle from down the hall in... Wormmon's room? Of course. He should have known. Who else would Davis spend all his time with than the Digimon? Heavy boots clunked against the floor in his brisk pace. There wasn't even a pause before he threw open the door stood there, total shock and disbelief stuck on his face. Dark indigo eyes looked at Davis, Veemon, Falcomon, Wormmon, Davis, Veemon, Davis, Falcomon, Davis... "The fuck!" he shrieked suddenly turning red in the face.

Davis' eyes went wide and he spun around on his heel to see the Kaiser standing in the doorway. "Oh man..." Falcomon murmured, purple claws coming to ruffle the black feathers on the back of his head.

Davis glanced at the two Digimon, now frozen mid-fight, then back at the Kaiser. "It's not what it looks like?" he offered unconvincingly.

"The hell it's not!" the Kaiser shrieked again. "This is what you've been doing?! I thought I could trust you, Davis! You can't rally the Digimon up outside, so you're going to build an army from the inside? Is that it?!" The Kaiser shook with rage. "So all this affection of yours has just been a farce? Some lie to get me into a comfort zone? Lead me off guard? I don't think so! This ends here!" He snapped his fingers and his trusty whip downloaded into his hand. "Your blue rat is going back into its egg and that horrible bird is going back into the freezer!" The Kaiser wasted no time cracking his whip and striking Falcomon across its body.

Falcomon cried out in pain, and Davis gasped, instantly getting between the Kaiser and the Digimon, putting his arms up defensively. "Stop it! I'm not building an army!" he snapped.

But Falcomon, ever eager to prove his worth, jumped in front of Davis instead. "Petit Cutter!" he shouted, rushing towards the Kaiser with his claws out.

"Stupid feathered rat," the Kaiser sneered as Falcomon charged. Another snap of the whip and he bound Falcomon by the wings, swinging him through the air to smash into the ground.

"V-Headbutt!"

"When will you idiotic creatures learn?" laughed the Kaiser. He whipped out the Taser and caught Veemon in the side with it, then smashing his boot on the Digimon's chest when it was down. "Calling out your attacks only alerts your enemy."

When Falcomon smashed into the ground, he suddenly was enveloped in a white glow and devolved back into Pinamon. The little In-Training Digimon slipped out of the whip's hold when he grew smaller and at once skittered over to Davis, hiding behind his leg as the boy grit his teeth angrily. Suddenly, he kicked over the panel in the floor where the Digivices and D-Terminals were hidden. He previously put them all into a bag so he could grab them all out of the hole beneath at once. He fished out his own Digivice, and then slung the bag over his shoulder. "Veemon!" he called, holding up the device as it began to glow with a blue light.

Veemon jumped up at the unspoken command. Channeling the power lost to him for four long years, he Digivolved into Raidramon with a mighty roar. "How did you find those?!" the Kaiser shouted, but his eyes were already on Wormmon who shrank back at the enraged glare. "I won't stand for your insolence, Davis!" He cracked the whip again, but it only struck Raidramon's armor. The Digimon didn't even flinch.

"Hurry, Davis, get on!" Wormmon jumped onto the larger Digimon's back, being the only one who could open the gate. He knew now there was no fixing his boy. Davis had to be set free.

Davis quickly scooped up Pinamon in his arms and jumped onto Raidramon's back, and the armor Digimon took off as soon as he did. They were soon racing through the halls so fast that the citadel echoed with the loud clanking of metal against metal and everything seemed to blur together, and the Kaiser was left in the dust.

The Kaiser spun on his heels to try and catch them, but they were already gone. Raidramon followed Davis' directions to the portal room. Once there, Wormmon began typing on the console. "You're going to come out in an alley," he explained, just as the Kaiser had. "No one will see you. Once you're through, the portal will close. Here, take this." He threw a small metal bracelet to Davis. "If for some reason you ever feel like returning, this bracelet has a code signature inside that will open the gate. Just tap the wall five times and you'll be allowed back through. It will only work for you, Davis. One signature per person. Understand?"

"Alright..." Davis said, putting the bracelet on as he watched the portal open. "Will the Digimon be able to get back through?" he asked, holding up Pinamon in his hand.

Wormmon nodded. "Yes, their natural code will allow them passage."

"Alright," Davis said, nodding and holding Pinamon tightly to his chest. He adjusted his grip on the bag of Digivices with his other hand, sighing slightly. He wished he had more time to try and free the other DigiEggs, but it looked like he didn't have a choice at this point. Having one last thought, he looked at Wormmon and bowed his head a bit. "Sorry to leave you like this, Wormmon. Stay safe, and thanks." And with that, he looked forward into the portal. "Alright Raidramon, let's go."

Wormmon just shook his head, smiling with his eyes. "My place is with Ken. Always."

Raidramon snorted slightly and pawed at the floor, unsure, at first, but with another encouraging word from Davis, he ran forward and jumped through the portal. The instant they all passed through, the two tiny Digimon and Davis landed in a pile of feathers, hair, and dirt. Chibimon was the first to blink his big red eyes and exclaim, "Davis! We did it!"

Davis fell flat on his face with the two In-Training Digimon on top of him, so he sputtered a bit as he lifted his head with a groan. But when Davis looked around the alley, a grin instantly came over his face. "It worked! We _are_ back!" he exclaimed, suddenly rolling over onto his back and laughing as he held the two little Digimon up over him. "This is awesome!"

"Where are we?" Pinamon asked, wriggling with excitement even though he didn't quite understand where they'd gone.

"This is the real world, Pinamon," Davis explained. "It's... it's my home."

"What are you gonna do first, Davis?" Chibimon asked with wiggling ears.

Davis exhaled heavily. "There's so much to do... Let's see..." He looked around and sat himself up, putting the Digimon down on the ground. In one direction, the alley led out onto the street. In the other, it led towards the park. He considered going into the city until he looked down at Chibimon and Pinamon again, gazing up at him expectantly. He wasn't sure if the bag with the Digivices in it was big enough for them, too. Putting his own Digivice into the bag, he said, "Let's go to the park," gesturing towards the trees as he spoke. "I've seen nothing but digital city and sand for like, almost a year."

Chibimon jumped excitedly. "Yeah, yeah! The park! I wanna see green again!" Without even thinking, the little blue Digimon took off, running as fast as his tiny feet could carry him toward the park.

"Chibimon, wait up!" Davis called, as Pinamon quickly sped after the other Digimon as well. Davis then ran after them, dodging through the trees as he tried to keep up with the Digimon, though he was laughing as he chased them down. He eventually slowed down when they were amongst the trees and he'd finally caught up to Chibimon, grabbing him and tickling his sides. "Run away from me, huh?" he teased with a smirk.

Chibimon squealed with laughter and wiggled at the tickling. "Stop! Stop!" he cried through giggles.

Pinamon chirped with laughter as he climbed up a nearby tree and sat on one of the low branches. Davis couldn't help a wide grin and laughs of his own until he finally relinquished his Digimon and sat down on the grass with him. Even just feeling the grass beneath him was enough to incite his mood to soar, and seeing the Digimon happy and laughing, free of thoughts of what had just occurred, helped it even more.

Once the tickling game was over, Chibimon took to lying back on Davis' clothed chest, arms spread out beside him and gazing up at the trees. It was the first real peaceful moment any of them had in a long, long time. The sun was shining, the air smelled clean, and everything looked so fresh and alive. This was how things were supposed to be. Chibimon fell asleep when his head perked up and he began sniffing at the air.

"What's the matter, Chibimon?" Davis asked as he watched the Digimon look around, sniffing at something. Pinamon fluttered down from his branch and landed on Davis' knee, looking curiously at the other Digimon as well.

"I smell something," he said. "Something from a long time ago... Something..." Chibimon sniffed again and again until he gasped with a big smile. "I smell Kari!"

"Kari?!" Davis shot into a sitting position, making Chibimon tumble off his chest and into the soft grass. Pinamon leapt down as well so Davis could scramble to his feet. "Are you sure, Chibimon? Which way?"

"This way!" Chibimon declared, pointing and running. He continued to sniff at the air. "I smell TK, too! And Yolei and Cody!"

"Lucky!" Davis gasped as he rushed after his Digimon, Pinamon dashing after them as well. What luck that they'd all be together! It was like everything was falling neatly into place just for his arrival home.

Chibimon ran and ran, seeming like nothing was going to stop him, so it was strange when he came to an abrupt halt on the other side of some bushes. He found the other children, all teenagers now, really. They appeared to be having a picnic, sitting on a blanket and eating, but he tilted his head curiously when he noticed how quiet they were and the dark colors they all wore.

Davis stopped when Chibimon stopped, crouching down in the bushes next to him. "Chibimon, what's wrong?" he asked quietly, only to look out into the clearing where all of the other children sat. He too quickly noticed that they were mostly dressed in black, formal clothing, and that they were silent as they ate.

"What's going on?" Pinamon asked, not lowering his voice as he hid behind the bushes, too.

"I don't really know..." Davis answered in a whisper.

Cody was the first to look over in their direction. Had it been anyone else, they might have turned back to their friends, but his training in kendo sharpened his senses over the years. "Who's there?" the boy asked with a slight frown.

Suddenly, Davis was hesitant to reveal himself. Something just seemed off. But Pinamon, with nothing to lose, jumped out of the bush into the clearing. "Hiya! I'm Pinamon!" he announced, waving his little talon hand.

Kari gasped and Yolei dropped her sandwich mid-bite. TK stared, gawking. Cody was the only one to place his food down calmly, stand up, and walk over to the little bird. "You're..." He knelt down in front of the creature. "You're a Digimon."

"Sure am," Pinamon said, his little feathered tails waving behind him. He bounced around Cody's feet, and then towards the other kids. "What're your names?"

"I-I-I'm TK," said the blond. "How... How did you get here?"

"I came with my friend Davis!" Pinamon chirped.

The group fell silent. They all looked at each other with strange expressions of curiosity, doubt, hope, and fear. "Davis... Davis who?" TK asked.

"Davis... Davis," Pinamon said, looking confused. "Oh, and Chibimon's here too! D'ya know them?"

Again, all the children looked at each other. What in the world was going on here? Cody took the first step by peering into the bushes. Almost sure there was something there, he went around to the other side. The now thirteen-year-old boy suddenly felt like he was nine again when he saw their long-lost companion hiding on the ground. He approached Davis slowly, hand reaching out hesitantly to touch the ghost. "...Davis?"

Davis rose out of the bushes, standing up and reaching out to touch Cody's hand before the other boy's could touch him. "Hey," was his greeting, for lack of anything else to say, along with his best smile. "Long time no see, huh?"

Cody stared up at the teenager towering over him. Cody was older for sure, but he'd only managed to grow another three inches or so in the last few years. He still had the short bowl cut and big green eyes full of innocent wisdom. He looked a little funny in the black suit, but Cody had always been that kind of kid. A hand slightly scarred from kendo practice touched Davis' arm, fingering the deeper scar tissue than his own. Cody stared hard at the body in front of him before looking up into brown eyes, eyebrows knitting together as tears started to build up, and then threw himself at Davis in a hug.

Davis swallowed guiltily, but kept smiling, putting his hands on Cody's shoulders comfortingly. "It's good to see you too," he said quietly, exhaling, almost relieved when Cody hugged him, as if he expected the other boy to run away or something completely far-fetched.

Chibimon stood at Davis' feet and watched all of this looking sort of sad. He knew how long all the children looked for Davis, but he died long before their spirits were ever this broken. Meanwhile, TK got up and came over, also staring at Davis as if he were a ghost. "Davis, what... What are you doing here?" he whispered, almost afraid anything louder would make the other teenager vanish.

Davis looked over at the blond, his expression now confused. "What d'ya mean?" he asked.

TK swallowed, licked his lips, and inhaled before answering, "You're dead."

"What?" Davis asked, before laughing strangely. "I'm not dead."

TK frowned. He looked down at Cody who was still crying into Davis' stomach, and then looked back up at his long-lost friend. "Then what did your parents bury?"

Davis' eyes widened. "Wh-what?"

"We're here to visit your grave, Davis," Kari said quietly, approaching the boy with a gentle frown on her lips.

"No way..." Davis breathed.

"Where did you go?" Cody asked through his tears, finally looking up at him again. "We looked everywhere for you. Where did you go this whole time?"

Davis looked down at Cody, suddenly looking guilty again. "I was... being held at the Kaiser's citadel," he sighed.

TK touched Davis' shoulder, squeezing it firmly, yet friendly. "Why didn't you ever contact us? We must have sent you hundreds of messages. Didn't you get any of them? You should have called for help."

"No, I didn't..." Davis murmured. He hesitantly lifted his hands from Cody's shoulders, and rolled up his sleeve, which had been just long enough to cover the spiral-shaped burn on the upper part of his arm. "I was under mind control the whole time... I don't even remember the past few years," he explained quietly.

Blue eyes widened. "Oh man... I can't believe he had you this whole time. We should have known. It's so obvious now." TK clenched his fists at his sides. "I'm so stupid... We could have saved you."

"How did you escape?" Cody asked.

"It's a long story," Davis said, shaking his head. "I don't feel like telling it." He then looked at all of the other children, and their sad faces, and couldn't help grinning again, reaching out to pat TK on the shoulder as well. "C'mon you guys, don't look so down. I'm back, isn't that a good thing?"

"To be honest, Davis, that's a really hard question to answer." TK looked right at Davis. "We're all really glad to have you back, but... I don't know how easy it's going to be for you, that's all."

"It'll be easier than living in that citadel," Davis said, staying positive.

TK rubbed the back of his head. "I suppose you could live with my brother for now," he suggested. "Kari, do you think Tai would be willing to put him up, too?"

"I'm sure Tai would be more than happy to," Kari said with a nod.

"Wait, wait," Davis said, waving his hands. "Thanks guys, but I don't need that. I need to go back to my parents."

TK tensed. Davis was so not making this easy. "Davis..."

"What?" Davis asked.

"Your parents moved away after they buried the empty grave for you," Yolei explained, her voice sounding a little hoarse from holding her tongue the whole time. "They couldn't bear to live in the same apartment anymore after they declared you legally dead. So they moved..."

"We don't know where they went," Kari added sadly.

Davis, at first, had no reaction. He stared at the other kids like he expected them to start laughing and reveal it to be some sort of joke. But when they continued to just look back at him, almost apologetically, he bit his lip and looked down at his feet.

"We're sorry, Davis," Cody said sadly.

"They kept hope as long as they could." TK put a hand on Cody's head. "Our brothers will put you up for as long as you need. They'll understand what happened. We... We can get you back on your feet, Davis. It will just take time."

Davis inhaled deeply, sadness evident on his face. But he forced himself not to cry or make a scene, and just smiled at TK thankfully. "Yeah... thanks. I don't know what I'd do without you guys."

TK offered a smile back, the first one so far. "You have a preference between Tai or my brother?"

"No offense to your brother, but I'd like to ask Tai first," Davis said, only then reaching into his bag and taking out his goggles that the Kaiser hid as well and sliding them back onto his head.

The blond just nodded. "None taken." He smiled when he saw the goggles on Davis' head. "You're starting to look more like yourself again," he said. TK then put an arm around the other teen's shoulders. "You probably don't want to hang around here anymore. Let's pack up and get you to Tai's place."

"One thing first," Davis said, opening his bag again and fishing through it until he produced a green and white Digivice and handed it over to TK. "I come bearing gifts."

TK stared in awe at the Digivice in his hand. "I thought I would never see this again..." He was certainly thankful for the gift, but he couldn't help asking with a sad smile, "I don't suppose you had room for Patamon in there?"

Davis looked down at the ground at that. "The DigiEggs were locked up. I only got to Chibimon out of dumb luck. I'm sorry."

TK just shook his head smiling. "No worries. This is already way more than we could have hoped for. Now go on, give the others theirs."

Davis nodded, distributing the other Digivices, and then the D-Terminals as well. "I have everyone else's Digivices, too," he said, as he fished out one of the older, blue Digivices. "But I don't know whose is whose."

"They'll know," TK assured him. "Us first generation kids got our Digivices mixed up plenty of times, but we always knew which one was our own." Digivice in hand, Cody hurried over to the picnic blanket to help Yolei pack everything up. TK noticed the Pinamon hovering around the purple-haired girl, strangely attracted by her Digivice. "Where did you get that other Digimon anyway?"

"I found 'em," Davis said, as he picked up Chibimon and sat him gently inside the now empty bag. He then went over to Pinamon to pluck him out of the air. "The Kaiser... has all of the Digimon eggs in a hatchery. But he didn't like this kind and kept their eggs frozen because he's afraid of crows, and Pinamon Digivolves into Crowmon at one point." He then placed Pinamon in the bag as well. "Chibimon and I broke open the freezer room thinking the high security meant that the Digivices were in there. And after all of the Puwamon got out, most of them were turned back into eggs and returned to the freezer except this one. So I kept him."

TK nodded at the story. "That's really cool of you, man. Nice to see you haven't changed." Once everything was packed up, TK slung his arm around Davis' neck and started walking. "Maybe now we can figure something out. If you could get your Digimon back, even with dumb luck, I bet there's a way we can get ours back." They passed by the cemetery on the way out of the park, but no one made a move to stop or even look at it.

Davis glanced at it, however. But after a moment, he moved his gaze back to TK, grinning slightly. "Yeah, I'm sure there is a way. There has to be. And now that we're all together, I bet we can figure it out. I just ran out of ideas, they're in, like, this indestructible glass case."

"Well, that's what teamwork is for. We'll come up with a plan before you know it, charge in there, and bust our Digimon out. The Kaiser won't know what hit him. And we'll make him pay for all the years of hell he put you through." They all walked on, sometimes having to take different streets because of new buildings that had been put up or torn down. Cody pointed to the middle school he was attending and then at the high school across the street where the others went. Yolei gestured toward the market district where the family had to move their store and apartment thanks to some rezoning policies a couple years ago. Soon they came to an apartment building that looked fairly new and was just a few blocks down from the local community college.

Davis was both awed and a little put off by it all. Everything was so different. Streets and buildings changed, and he had no clue how he was ever going to adjust to high school. But like hell was he going to go back to elementary or even middle school looking the way he did. Maybe he could get home schooled by someone... His thoughts continued until they arrived at the apartment building that he didn't recognize. "Is this... where Tai lives?" he asked quietly.

TK nodded. "Yeah. They're actually dorms, so it's all included in his tuition package," TK explained. "He coaches a soccer team on the weekends and summer, so he makes enough money to pay for the place while his parents cover all the academic stuff."

Davis scratched at the back of his head at that. "Am I gonna be allowed to stay with him in a dorm?"

"Well, yeah. See... It's weird. The city built these new apartments thinking that people would want to live closer to the water, but due to it being so close to the college, students started moving in instead. The apartment people were complaining about losing money or something, so the college took the complex off their hands. So really... They're apartments that act like dorms. I guess."

"That is... weird," Davis said, dropping his hands to his sides. Yet another new thing he knew nothing about. "Now I just gotta hope they're okay with pets," he said, laughing at his own joke to brighten his mood again.

"C'mon, I'll take you upstairs," Kari offered. "And we'll all get together again and talk some more after you get settled in."

"Yeah, okay," Davis said, nodding his head.

Tai heard a knocking at his door. He didn't think it could be Yamato since he had a big essay exam tomorrow he was cramming for. To say he was surprised to see who was at the door would be an understatement. Tai stared at Davis and his sister a few long seconds before closing the door, waiting for a count of ten, and then opened the door again to be sure. "So I'm not seeing things," he said.

Davis laughed meekly, shrugging his shoulders. "Not a mirage," he answered.

"Damn..." the older brunet breathed. "You been gone a long time, kid. C'mon, get in here," Tai said while gesturing with his hand. Brown eyes then looked to the girl. "Thanks for bringing him, Kari. I'll take good care of him."

Kari nodded, smiling gently as Davis shuffled inside. "I know you will. I'm going to head home with everyone else." She then bowed her head before heading back towards the stairs.

Tai nodded after her and closed the door once she was gone. He nudged Davis' discarded shoes up against the wall before going in to find the boy standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. "Relax," Tai said with a laugh. "Sit down. Put your feet up. You want some Ramune? I've got melon flavored. Or I have some cola. The American stuff. You hungry?" Taichi Yagami had grown into his full height. A bit of an unnatural five foot ten inches. His hair was shorter, but not too terribly much. The edges had just been trimmed down to look less like a bush. He had legs more muscled than his arms and a chest that just fit into his t-shirt.

"I guess some American soda sounds good, yeah," Davis said with a still nervous smile, sitting down on an overstuffed sofa that sat in the middle of the main room. He put his bag down in his lap. "And I'm not hungry, but... what about you guys?" he asked, as he pulled the drawstrings back, revealing Chibimon and Pinamon sitting on top of all of the old Digivices.

"Oooh, can I have a snack?" Pinamon chirped.

"Chocolate!" Chibimon chimed. It was one of his favorites.

Tai laughed from in the kitchen. "Okay. I think I have something for everybody." He came out soon enough with a small tray. One soda for Davis, a sports drink for himself, two small bowls of milk for the Digimon, a small chocolate bar for Chibimon, and herb crackers for Pinamon. "There. I think that'll suit everyone's needs."

"Yay!" Pinamon exclaimed, grabbing the crackers and gnawing on them hungrily.

Davis laughed, taking his soda in one hand and ruffling the Digimon's feathers with the other. "Thanks, Tai," he said, before gulping down the soda nearly all in one go. It hadn't occurred to him how thirsty he was until the glass touched his lips.

Chibimon snatched up the chocolate as well and was munching away on it happily. Tai grinned and nodded while drinking from his own drink bottle. When he saw how quickly Davis finished off the soda, he went back to the kitchen to grab a couple of water bottles. "You look like you need these," Tai offered and sat down again.

"Thanks," Davis said, nodding and cracking open one of the bottles. "It's been a rough morning."

"Been a rough four years by the looks of you," Tai said.

Davis exhaled, nodding and taking a swig from the bottle. "You can say that again."

Tai just grinned. "What did you do? Try to be a wilderness expert and live among the Grizzlymon?"

Davis laughed slightly. "I wish. At least that way it'd be my own fault."

"The Digital World can be a bitch," Tai said and absently touched his neck. "What really happened to you, Davis? Last any of us heard, you were presumed kidnapped and dead, and we all watched a closed casket get lowered into the ground with your name on the headstone."

Davis swallowed dryly. He did not like the image that brought to his mind. "I was kidnapped," he said. "By the Kaiser. He put a Dark Spiral on me and kept me in his citadel," he explained, again rolling up his sleeve to show the spiral-shaped burn on his arm as he explained.

Tai frowned as he leaned forward to get a good look at the burn. He ghosted his fingers over the shape in case it was at all irritated. "Man, my scars are like love taps compared to this," he said.

"And I'm scarred all over, too," Davis groaned. "It's crazy. My skin's so thick now that I barely feel it when I get hurt."

"Well that's kinda cool," he replied with a shrug. "Davis, I hope you can forgive us," Tai said when he finally leaned back again.

"Forgive you guys?" Davis asked. "What for?"

Tai sighed. "Knowing where you were this whole time now, makes it feel like we should have been able to get you out no problem. It should have been obvious. Who else would want to take you, right? It was hard for us first generation kids to fight seeing as how unstable our evolution was. Your friends probably could have saved you, too, but stuff just kept happening. Then there was your funeral." Tai sighed again, now frustrated with himself. "I know they're all just excuses."

Davis shook his head. "No, I don't need to forgive you guys for anything," he said firmly. "I know you all did everything you could to try and find me and take down the Kaiser. But it just didn't work out. You shouldn't beat yourselves up over it... TK reacted the same way."

The older boy nodded. "Yeah, TK takes after Yamato that way. Anything that goes wrong, they take it personally. Both are convinced that when something needs fixed or saving, the weight is suddenly all on their shoulders. They have to protect the world from the dumb and painfully weak," he said with a mild laugh.

Davis smiled as he then moved Chibimon and Pinamon off his lap and onto their own places on the couch. He missed Taichi, probably the most. The older boy was his idol, everything he wanted to be and more. And his humor was really what he needed after all of the fighting and depressing news the morning brought. After a short laugh, he offered his bag of Digivices over to the other boy. "Here, one of these is yours."

Tai took the back and began to rummage through its contents. Finally, his face lit up and he pulled out one of the Digivices. "Here it is. Wow... Sight for sore eyes."

"Will you bring the other ones to everyone else?" Davis asked. "I don't know where they all live anymore..."

Tai nodded. "Sure. Mimi and Izzy are over in America right now, but everyone else is still local. I'll get these to them in no time."

"Thanks," Davis said, as he leaned back on the couch. "So... Kari said she thought you'd be okay with letting me stay here for a while... is it okay with you?"

"Of course!" Tai said more cheerfully now, slapping Davis on the back. "You can live here for as long as you want. We'll be like brothers! But," he began to warn, "if you come home and find the Van's A-Rockin sign on my bedroom door, _do not_ come in. At all. Unless the apartment is on fire."

Davis blushed slightly, but soon laughed a bit and stood up, offering Tai his hand to shake on it. "It's settled, then. And I'll keep that last thing in mind."

Tai stood as well and shook hands. "I mean it now," he said with a grin. "That's when Yamato and I are having hot sweaty fuck time and if you so much as breathe on the door, I will eat your face. Capeesh?"

"I get it, I get it," Davis said, putting his hand over the bottom half of his face. "I'll keep away when the sign's on the door."

"Good boy!" Tai said giving Davis another slap on the back with a hearty laugh. Clearly, even at eighteen, Tai hadn't changed that much on the inside.

"Where should we sleep?" Pinamon suddenly piped up from around his final cracker.

"Hm?" Tai looked around Davis to see the little feathered creature making crumbs on his couch. "Oh yeah! Well, there is a second bedroom. I mostly keep soccer stuff in there, but I have an air mattress, a sleeping bag, and an extra pillow for you, Davis. As for the Digimon, I dunno... Maybe we can make you a shoebox nest or something."

"They can sleep in my bed if they like," Davis said with a shrug. "Really, I'm used to sharing."

"Hooray!" Pinamon chirped, before demolishing off the last of his cracker.

Chibimon squirmed in his seat with a slight frown. He liked Pinamon and all, but he was used to being the one to sleep with Davis in a bed. He wasn't very good at sharing his boy. The little Digimon kept his mouth shut, though, so as not to hurt Pinamon's feelings.

Davis caught sight of Chibimon out of the corner of his eye, and picked the blue Digimon up. "It's better than our sleeping arrangements before, isn't it?"

"Yeah..." Chibimon admitted, tiny paws crossed cutely in front of his body as he turned side to side. "I was just kinda hopin’ it would be you and me once we escaped, Davis. That's all."

"I'll take that shoebox nest if it really bothers you, Chibimon," Pinamon offered, fluttering over to hover behind Davis' shoulder. "I like nests, anyway!"

"If you're sure," Chibimon said, joy already sneaking into his voice.

"Mhm!" Pinamon hummed. He had so much to be thankful to Chibimon for, after all. He and Wormmon pretty much raised him when Davis wasn't able to be around, and if it weren't for Chibimon, he wouldn't have been able to learn how to fight. So in the end, it all seemed fair.

Tai clapped his hands together. "All right. I'll get everything set up so you guys can go to sleep whenever you're ready." He got the blow-up mattress and sleeping bag from the hall closet, and he used his hair dryer to blow the thing up. With that done, Tai started shredding failed quiz papers and old soccer jerseys for Pinamon's nest.

Pinamon was soon happily settled amongst the paper and jerseys, though he did insist his nest at least be placed up on a high shelf rather than the ground. He liked pretending he was in a tree. Davis put Chibimon down on the mattress, and even though it wasn't that late, he was overcome with the desire to get some sleep in a bed made for one. "Thanks again for putting me up, Taichi," he said over his shoulder as he unzipped the sleeping bag.

"Don't mention it. I'm happy to." Tai came up behind Davis then, kneeling down and wrapping his arms around the boy's shoulders in a hug from behind. "I'm here if you ever want to talk, okay? I'll even skip classes and soccer practice for you. You just say the word."

Davis smiled, putting a hand over one of those strong arms. "Thanks, Taichi. But hopefully any breakdowns will happen when you're off the clock," he joked with a chuckle.

"I'm serious," Taichi said, tightening his hold just slightly. "If you need me for anything at anytime, I'll be here. I promise. I know you're gonna need someone to take care of you. If I have to be that person, I'll do it in a heartbeat."

"Yeah, I know you're serious," Davis said, closing his eyes and nodding. He lost his breath when Tai tightened his hug, but managed, again, "I can't thank you enough."

"You can start by letting it all go," Tai answered. Chibimon looked up at his boy and nodded, knowing Taichi was right. It was time for Davis to let it all out. To set free what he clamped up inside.

Davis bit his lip slightly, looking from Chibimon to Pinamon, and then tilting his head back to look upwards at Tai, leaning his head back against him. "I dunno if I'm ready," he said quietly.

Taichi nodded. "I won't argue with you if that's how you feel, but trust me when I say... The longer you keep it in, the worse it's going to feel. Sometimes you think you're being brave when you keep hurt feelings inside, but you're just beating yourself up for no reason. It's like a poison, Davis. Once you let it out... You don't feel so sick anymore. I know."

"I believe you. It's just that I just got back and everything... I want a little while to adjust before I start talking out where I got away from."

"I don't mean talking, Davis. I mean letting yourself release. You don't have to say a word. You just have to let yourself heal. That's it."

Davis bit his lip, but murmured, "Still."

Taichi just nodded again. "Okay. You do what feels right. Just know that I love you, Davis. We all love you and we're going to be here for you." With that, Taichi pulled away from the younger boy and stood to leave so Davis could sleep.

Davis opened his mouth, considering calling Tai back, but decided against it. The call died on his lips and he closed his mouth, turning to strip off his shirt, jeans, and socks and climb into the sleeping bag silently.

Chibimon looked back and forth between Davis and the door Tai just walked through before burrowing into the sleeping bag. "Davis?" he offered gently and pawed the boy's cheek.

"Hm?" Davis hummed, seemingly already lost in his thoughts as he lay his head back on the pillow.

"Is it okay if I cry for you?"

"Don't do that, Chibimon," Davis said with a frown. "Cry for yourself, but not for me. I'll get around to letting my feelings out eventually."

"But..." Chibimon sniffled. Already the tears were forming. "Davis won't cry for himself when he's supposed to. Davis was hurt really badly for a really long time. Davis wasn't allowed to grow up." His voice came in sad squeaks as the tears fell. "Davis doesn't recognize his home anymore. Davis' friends thought he was dead. And now... Davis doesn't have a mom and dad to go back to." Chibimon plopped back onto his bottom and cried into his tiny paws. "The worst thing that happened to me was being in an egg, but I wasn't being tortured. Davis was! I didn't protect Davis and now he's broken!"

"Oh, Chibimon..." Davis sighed, gently scratching behind his Digimon's ear before pulling him closer, hugging him to his chest. "Chibimon, don't cry about that. It's not your fault."

"Then why do I feel so bad?" Chibimon squeaked into the boy's chest.

"No one feels good about this, Chibimon," Davis said. "But instead of feeling bad about it, we need to get back on our feet and do our best to fix it. If we can work with everyone and save the Digital World, it'll all be worth it in the end."

Chibimon nuzzled into Davis' warm skin. "I wish you didn't have to suffer for so long."

"Thanks, Chibimon," Davis said, gently patting the blue Digimon's back. "But don't lose sleep over it. We need to be in top condition to fight for the Digital World, right?"

Chibimon nodded and bravely as he could. "Right."


	13. Everyone Needs Help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this fanfic was written wayyyy before Digimon Tri or DIGIMON ADVENTURE: came out, so please ignore/forgive anything that conflicts as we move into these chapters that really focus on the original kids

Davis had been back for almost a week now. All the Chosen Children had been informed of his return and they were all joyed to know he was alive and well. Mimi sent her regards from New York while Izzy promised to set up a new identity for Davis even though he was away in Colorado. Sora came over as soon as she heard to make Davis dinner. Yamato saw him the most often, as he came over to Taichi's apartment at least three times a week for this or that. It had been planned for Davis to start high school the coming Monday, and Joe was coming in all the way from his residency in Kyoto to check the boy out. That's why Taichi was now knocking on the bedroom door. "Davis? Davis, you awake?"

Tai was answered with loud snoring that sent a very clear answer to the boy's question. Soon, the door cracked open slightly and Pinamon jumped down from the doorknob to sit at Tai's feet. "He stayed up really late last night thinking about stuff," the little feathered Digimon explained.

Tai grinned at the little brown bird. "He'll have plenty of time for thinking when he goes back to school. Right now, Joe needs to make sure everything is ticking right." He entered the room, waving to Joe to wait a minute, and knelt down next to the boy's bed. "Davis, you need to wake up." Tai shook the kid's shoulder gently. "It's already noon on Saturday. You've slept long enough."

Davis jerked out of his sleep, groaning as his eyelids tightened together with an obvious desire to not get up. "Five more minutes," he whined in typical childish fashion. Pinamon hopped up by his feet now, shaking Chibimon too, who was curled up there, chirping like any bird might in the morning in such a way that it woke most everyone.

"You heard him," Chibimon squeaked and waved his paw. "Five more minutes."

Tai laughed. "Trust me, I know how you feel, but you need to get up. Joe came all the way from Kyoto to see you. He deserves a little respect, and that means getting up."

Davis cracked an eye open, groaning and rolling onto his stomach before he forced himself up, getting out of bed and rubbing his eyes tiredly. "Alright, alright," he sighed, as Pinamon took to trying to balance on Chibimon's side until the other Digimon got up as well.

"Nuuuu..." Chibimon whined as he rolled back and forth.

Tai kept grinning and pat Davis on the head. "Be a good sport and I'll take you out for cheeseburgers later, okay?" Since Davis was already without pajama shirt and pants, seeing as how they never got around to buying him any, Tai yanked the boy's socks off to leave Davis in just his boxers. "All right, Joe, he's all yours."

The much taller man came into the room then. His long hair from adolescence was gone, cut even shorter than when he was a child. A smaller pair of round frames perched upon his nose. Much like his youth, though, a sweater vest, khakis, and brown loafers made up his attire. "Hi, Davis. Long time no see," Joe greeted with his own smile.

Davis removed his fists from his eyes to look at the other boy—or man, he supposed—and he gaped a little as he looked him up and down. "Wow, you changed," he commented. Having never known Joe when he was younger, the change seemed way more drastic to him than it did to anyone else.

Joe laughed. "I suppose I have, yet some people might say I haven't. The same could be said for you, though. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I guess so," Davis responded, scratching at the back of his head. "So... what are you gonna do again?"

"Did you ever go to the doctor for a checkup, Davis?" Joe asked as he knelt down on the floor and began looking through his bag.

"Yeah," Davis said, nodding as he watched Joe shuffle through his bag. "Is that it? Why?"

"Well that and maybe a few other things. Depends on how this goes. I heard you had been roughed up pretty badly while you were missing, and I can see it wasn't an overstatement. We just want to make sure you're really okay. Plus, you need a clean physical before you can go back to school. Will you be okay with that? I'm not going to stick you with anything if it makes you feel better."

"Yeah, that's fine," Davis said, nodding. He still worried about school in the back of his mind. He never got through middle school. He didn't think he was ready for high school. But he pushed those thoughts aside; that wasn't what was going on right now.

"Okay, first things first. Do you have any headaches, trouble breathing, trouble sleeping, pain in your joints, problems hearing, seeing, or using the bathroom?" Joe asked, now officially in doctor mode.

Davis looked awkward as he shuffled his feet. "No?" he answered, only to backtrack and say, "Well, I can't get to sleep sometimes if that counts because I think too much about stuff. And sometimes my chest hurts and it's sorta hard to breathe, but that's it," he said, gesturing to his chest with one hand.

Joe laughed. "Even the best of us have those kinds of nights," he said. "But your chest is a concern." Joe pulled a stethoscope from his bag, put in the ear pieces, and placed the diaphragm against Davis' chest. "Take three deep breaths for me and then two big coughs." Davis did as he was told, and Joe heard the irregular heartbeat hammering against the metal circle he placed on the boy's scarred skin. Joe frowned. "Davis, does the pain get worse when you drink something caffeinated or when you're under any kind of emotional stress?" he asked as he moved the diaphragm across the boy's chest.

"The second one, yeah," Davis admitted, biting his lip a little. "Why? What does that mean?"

"Well, it could be a number of things," Joe said. "Let's knock some things off the list. You aren't inactive, so it's not from a lack of exercise. You show no signs of cocaine usage. I doubt you indulge in too much caffeine. So... Does asthma run in your family?"

"No," Davis said, shaking his head. "Not as far as I know..."

"Okay. Now I need you to think carefully, Davis. Have you ever coughed enough to bring up a pink, foamy mucus? I know it sounds gross, but I need you to tell me."

Davis scrunched his face up disgustedly, but eventually shook his head. "I can't remember... see," he gestured to the spiral-shaped burn on his arm, something he was getting really sick of doing. "I can't remember the past four years at all. So if I have, I don't know."

Joe nodded. "Well, if you haven't had that recently, then it's not a problem. So just in the time you can remember, do you experience an extreme shortness of breath, dizziness, or fainting after you've been active? Like running, jumping, or even climbing stairs?"

"No, not really," Davis said with a shake of his head. "Just... just when I get upset. I haven't fainted, though," he added quickly.

Joe nodded again. "Just a few last questions. When you get upset, do you experience sweating, nausea, or shaking?"

"Yeah, a bit," Davis said, now holding one arm with his opposite hand.

Joe nodded one last time with a smile. "Well, Davis, I think you'll be relieved to know that all you're experiencing are panic attacks."

Davis exhaled gently, nodding. "Yeah, I am. I'm too young for heart problems."

"A panic attack is a sudden, intense fear or anxiety that can make you short of breath, dizzy, and your heart pound. You might also feel out of control. They occur more often in women than men, but considering what you've been through, this makes sense. Now when I listened to your heart there was a distinct irregular rhythm. This tells me you've experienced a number of panic attacks over an extended period of time."

"That makes sense," Davis said with a nod. He then frowned a bit. "Can I stop them?"

"With therapy and medication, most panic disorders can be easily treated." Joe smiled. "Knowing you, I'm sure talking isn't something you'll want to do, but luckily I'm certified to prescribe medication. I can get you Prozac. It's very basic and can help you control any feelings of anxiety that come up."

Davis groaned quietly, playing with his bangs. He didn't really like the idea of going on medication at all. "Is that the only option?" he asked.

Joe smiled sympathetically and nodded. "Therapy and medication are the only known treatments for panic attacks, Davis."

"You're the doctor, I guess," Davis murmured. "But I mean, I'm not there anymore, so... maybe it'll go away?"

"Well, that is a possibility, but you've got new challenges ahead of you. Panic attacks are often mental and emotional, Davis. Unless you can let go of all the feelings you have for what happened to you, these aren't going to stop. You'll start going to school, dealing with peer pressure, teachers, tests, studying, learning a new pattern of living. It's like a stack of blocks. If you stack too many too high, they all come toppling over."

Davis let out another heavy exhale, running his hands back through his hair. "Alright, I guess. If it'll help, I'll do it." He still really didn't want to have to be that kid who was on medication. That just wasn't him. But Davis felt so awkward in his own skin anyway, so anything that Joe said would help him he'd have to believe and go along with. If only to help him get back to being himself again.

Joe knew that expression. That sigh. "Davis," he began with a hand on the boy's shoulder, "can I tell you a secret?"

Davis raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Yeah?"

"I have to take medication to help me sleep. Taichi? He takes medication to help him pay attention in classes. TK started going to a counselor a year ago to talk about his parents' divorce. Cody takes anti-depressants to deal with his father's death. Even Mimi has to take something once a week for her hands. You aren't alone. Almost everybody has something they need help with these days. Not everyone needs meds, but everyone needs help. Okay?"

Davis hadn't thought of it that way. Eventually, the pensive look fell away from his face and he managed a smile. "Okay." Suddenly, his normal demeanor sprang back full force as he smirked up at Joe. "Mimi takes something for her hands, huh? What's she doing with her hands?" he asked with an insinuative quirk of the brow.

"Ha ha, very funny, Davis." Joe just rolled his eyes with a light chuckle. "She uses her hands a lot in her cooking. She's developed some carpel tunnel in her wrists."

"Uh-huh," Davis hummed, feeling better with himself for lightening the mood. "So, was there anything else you needed to check?"

"Just the little things." Joe reached out and snapped his finger right next to Davis' ear.

Davis jumped a little, looking up at Joe. "Uh, what was that for?"

The man smirked. "Making sure your reactions are up to par." Joe pulled his transilluminator from his bag. "Follow the light without turning your head, all right? Just your eyes." He then proceeded to move the light left, right, up, and down.

Again, Davis was able to do what he was asked, following the light with his eyes. "Are you gonna have to check my reflexes, too?" he asked, squinting his eyes a little as the light was removed.

"Now you're getting it," Joe laughed. He took the little rubber tipped hammer from his bag next and tapped each of Davis' knees and elbows. He smiled amusedly when the limbs jumped or bent on reflex. That was one of his favorite parts. "Now touch your thumbs to each of your fingers while counting back from ten."

Davis looked a little confused by that test, but did as he was told. When he was done, he asked, "What in the hell does that test?"

Joe laughed again. He was really enjoying Davis. "It tests your coordination; make sure all the wires in your brain are hooked up. It's kind of like when police ask drunk people to walk a straight line and say their ABC's. You check out tip top, Davis. All your scars concern me, though. I'd like to take a closer look, but I know you won't be comfortable with that. Just answer me this. Have you ever noticed any of the scars feeling warm, painful, or show signs of infection?"

"I don't think so," Davis said, now looking at one of his scarred up arms. "But I don't feel much of anything anymore, to be honest. I only feel stuff in some places where I don't have scars, like my face and my shoulders and one of my thighs. But..." He glanced at his other arm now. "The ones I can see don't look infected to me." He paused for a moment, then added, "But there are some I can't see. You can check those out if you want."

Joe shook his head. "If they were infected, you'd know. Like I said, if any of them ever feel warm, cause discomfort, or start to ooze, you need to let a doctor know. And as for your skin toughening over, some of that, but not all, can soften up with time. As you shed skin cells and make new ones, you'll start to get some feeling back. All in all, I give you a clean bill of health, Davis. I'll write up a prescription for the Prozac and you'll be all set."

"Alright," Davis said with a nod. "That's good to hear, at least." He touched the scar-covered arm gingerly and managed something of a grin. "It'll be nice when I get feeling back."

"It will take a few months, but as long as you don't get hurt anymore, you'll be fine." Joe took a prescription pad from his bag and filled it out, ripped it off, and then handed it over to Davis. "You can get that at the pharmacy in the grocery store around the corner. This is an order for 30 days. I'm going to write you another three, but you can't fill them all at once."

"Okay..." Davis said, looking at the paper and placing it on the small folding table that Tai gave him to use as a nightstand along with the next three. Then, he glanced over at Joe and offered him a smile. "Thanks, Joe."

"Don't mention it," Joe replied and pat Davis on the shoulder. "Good luck at school. I'm sure you'll fall into place soon."

"I hope so," Davis answered. He then went to the doorway of his room and called into the apartment, "Alright, I did it! You owe me cheeseburgers, Taichi!"

"Cheeseburgers!" Chibimon exclaimed, only now leaping up out of the bed excitedly.

Joe and Tai exchanged pleasantries before the young doctor left. Tai invited Joe to come along, but his friend insisted he needed to get back to Kyoto. Lucky for Davis, Tai still held on to some clothes he wore in high school, so the boy had something to wear when they went out. "Ready to go?" he asked, grabbing his wallet.

Davis looked absolutely ecstatic as he tugged on the blue jersey with the yellow triangle on the front that he knew Taichi wore oh so often during high school. He grabbed his bag, putting Pinamon and Chibimon safely inside before slinging it over his shoulder and rushing to the door. "Born ready!" he exclaimed.

"Awesome." They went to a burger joint that was located close to campus, feeding the inexpensive eating habits of the college students. Taichi let Davis order whatever he wanted, remembering his own phase of eating mountains of food while going through his growth spurt. Even now he'd ordered two burgers, a large fry, and a milkshake. "So I've been talking to Izzy and he can get you a schedule that puts you in all of Kari's classes."

"Sweet," Davis said as he took his food and turned around to look for a table. His eyes strayed to an open booth in the corner of the restaurant, but he shook his head and led the way to a table in the dead center of the place. "So... I'm gonna go straight into high school, then?" Davis asked as he started eating his fries just as soon as they sat down.

Taichi nodded. "We're going to see how well you fare. A lot of material in high school is just new rather than the next stage of what you learned in elementary and middle school." The older teen laughed. "Besides, who really remembers what they learned two or three years ago? You can read and write, so you'll be fine. Literature, history, and gym should be a breeze. Kari is in biology, so you don't have to worry about chemical equations or anything like that. She is in algebra-two, but both Izzy and I are more than willing to help you study. Izzy is available via webcam almost every evening. Oh, Kari also has photography as an elective, but we can put you in basketball with TK if you'd prefer that."

Davis frowned a bit. "Is there soccer?" he asked hopefully, as he grabbed his drink and started to chug it down.

"Sure!" Taichi replied. "We just thought you'd like being with your friends, but we can definitely put you in soccer if you want."

"I miss soccer," Davis stated around his straw.

Taichi nodded. "I understand that completely." He finished off his first burger and then started on his second. "What do you say you and me go kick a ball around after this?" he asked with a grin.

"Yes!" Davis exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air. "I'm so up for that!" And so he proceeded to wolf down his cheeseburger as Pinamon began to sneak fries off of his tray to share between him and Chibimon inside the bag.

Taichi laughed. "Slow down! Slow down! If you keep eating like that, you'll get a stomach ache or you'll get cramps on the field. We have all afternoon."

"Hey, I didn't have breakfast, I'm hungry," Davis protested with a full mouth. "Besides," he added as he swallowed, "it's been a while since I got to have a real cheeseburger instead of like, a digital one."

That earned Davis a funny look. "Digital cheeseburger?"

"Mhm," Davis said with a nod. "And digital ice cream and digital fries and digital sodas... I mean, they taste fine, but I prefer real food."

"Davis, what are you talking about? The Digital World doesn't have cheeseburgers. Not when I was there at least."

"Oh, right..." Davis murmured, having totally forgotten that no one else had been to the Digital World he'd seen. "The Kaiser..." he started, the name feeling sour on his tongue. "He made a digital Odaiba outside of his citadel... to try and make me feel more comfortable and stop me from trying to leave."

"Wow..." Taichi looked genuinely surprised as he leaned back and sucked on the straw of his milkshake. "That was really nice of him. I wouldn't peg him as that kind of guy. Y'know, to do something like that for someone else."

"He's not," Davis said, shaking his head. "Just for me. He..." The boy glanced to the side, and then looked back at Tai. "Likes having me around. A lot."

The older boy nodded. "I see. Well... he is human, though hard to believe. Humans have a natural need for companionship. When you spend enough time with someone, that need evolves from one level to another."

"You can say that again," Davis snorted, before letting out a sigh. "The whole thing was really confusing."

"How so? Talk to me, Davis."

Davis swallowed, leaning forward on the table. "The Kaiser likes me... romantically," Davis clarified.

Taichi laughed. "I understand that, Davis. You don't replicate a city for someone you only like as a friend. You don't release them from slavery, either. It's obvious the Kaiser was in love with you. The question is, how did that make you feel? Everything he did for you must have meant something."

Davis exhaled heavily when Tai laughed. It didn't seem like a laughing matter to him. "It makes me feel weird," was the only explanation Davis could give, playing with one fry that he kept spinning between his fingers. "Like, I can get along with him better than I expected, but when he tries to get me to get closer... I just can't do it," he said, shaking his head. "I can't look over everything he's done. And I shouldn't be able to, right?"

"Maybe. Forgiveness is very important, Davis. Being the bigger person means telling someone you forgive what they've done, even if they refuse to change. Holding grudges just puts a heavy weight on your shoulders and carrying it around never gets any easier." Taichi leaned forward on the table, looking carefully at the boy across from him. "But Davis, what if you came to learn that the child the Kaiser is, isn't the evil one?"

"That's another thing," Davis murmured. "Wormmon told me a story... about how the Kaiser came to be who he is. Apparently, he was affected by something called the Dark Spore that made him how he is... and that he just needs help." Davis then turned his head towards the bag sitting on the chair next to him. "But Chibimon brought up a good point, that trying to get close to him in order to help him may encourage him into thinking that I approve of what he's done." Davis then put his head in his hand, groaning as he added, "But if I make it clear that I don't approve, he'd try and take it out on the Digimon and I'd put them in serious danger."

"You have to reach the child inside, Davis. Whatever the Kaiser has done isn't what's important. Years ago, Yamato was possessed while we were in the Digital World. It made him turn against me and I couldn't understand what came over him. I did what I could to get through to him. Granted that turned out to be hitting him, but I had to get back to Yamato." He shook his cup to get the last of the milkshake in the straw. "If you were still with the Kaiser, you would need to find out who he used to be and try getting back to that person. By getting back to that child, the Kaiser would let off his control issues."

Davis listened to him, hanging on to Taichi's every word. It was no wonder he looked up to the guy. In Davis' eyes, he could solve any problem. "Alright," Davis said, a moment of silence passing after the other boy was done speaking. "I... understand what you're saying," he said, as he went back to his meal. "It's still weird to deal with, though."

Taichi nodded. "I understand that." He shrugged. "But it doesn't really matter anymore, does it? You're here now and he's back in the Digital World."

"Yeah, I guess not," Davis said with a nod, polishing off his burger and relinquishing the last of his fries to Pinamon's grabby hand that emerged out of the bag.

"There ya go." Taichi crumpled up the wrappers and napkins, stuffed them in the empty fry box, and slurped up the last of his milkshake. "Are you ready to go play some soccer?"

Davis' smiled returned now. "Hell yeah," he said, grabbing the bag with the Digimon inside and carefully slinging it over his shoulder. The Digimon didn't seem to mind the fact that Davis didn't give the smoothest ride; they had a whole box of fries to keep them happy.

"They relocated the soccer field farther away from the river because too many balls were getting kicked into the water. It's closer to the middle school now, especially since the team went to the nationals two years ago. The stadium is more bowl shaped now to prevent balls from escaping," he said with a laugh.

Davis frowned. "Aw, man. I liked it being by the water. It really wasn't that hard to just dive in after the ball, anyway."

Taichi laughed again. "I would agree with you on that one, but the general consensus was to move the stadium." They got there soon enough despite its relocation. Tai grabbed a few soccer balls from the storage room and kicked them onto the field. "Let's see what you've got."

Davis technically hadn't played in years, but it felt like his last match was only yesterday. He took back to the field like he never left the real world. As soon as the ball hit the field, he grabbed it and was running towards Tai's goal, a huge grin fixed on his face. He missed this. So much. Even when Tai stole the ball, Davis felt like he was running on air as he suddenly changed direction and ran after him; a lot faster than he ever remembered being able to run.

Tai couldn't believe how fast Davis came up on him. He never saw anyone run that fast before. Even Ken Ichijouji never gave that kind of performance. The first time Davis took the ball, all Taichi could do was stumble to a stop and watch the boy fly across the field. "Holy shit..." he breathed.

When Davis made it to the other side of the field, he kicked the ball into the goal, watching it shoot straight in. He grinned, turning around and putting his hands up. "Still got it!"

"Wow, he's fast!" Pinamon chirped from the bleachers where he and Chibimon had taken a seat to watch.

"Davis is the best of the best!" Chibimon cheered. Tai jogged up to Davis with his mouth still slightly agape. "Davis, that was amazing! You've got the legs of a gazelle, dude! When did that happen?"

"I'unno," Davis said, shrugging his shoulders. "Lots of stuff changed... I guess I'm faster now, too." He then started to scratch at his chin thoughtfully. "That'd explain why I could outrun all of those Monochromon, though..."

Brown eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. "You outran a pack of Monochromon?! Davis! Davis…!" Tai ran back to the store room and came back with a stop watch. "Stand at that line and when I say go, run to the other end of the field and back."

"Um, alright," Davis said, not seeming to understand what the big deal was. He stood at the line, getting down into a runner's lunge, and when Tai signaled for him to start, he took off across the field, practically sliding across the grass when he took his turn and ran back. He touched the line and skidded to a stop before turning around and putting his hands on his knees with a long exhale.

Taichi just stared at the stop watch for a few long seconds. First, he shook it and then held his ear to it. "Davis... Davis you did that in twelve seconds..."

"R-really?" Davis asked, shaking his head and walking over to look at the stop watch as well.

"Yes. This... This is incredible. Ten seconds is great for 120 yards, but you ran 120 yards in six seconds... and back!"

Davis just stared, but then let out a long breath and a confused look came over his face. "I have no clue how that's even possible..." Suddenly, brown eyes went wide and touched the burn mark on his arm. "Do you think... do you think it might've been the spiral?"

Taichi nodded slightly. "Maybe. I mean... people who get into accidents sometimes have to get prosthetic limbs and their endurance his enhanced by it. There's a good possibility that the spiral acted like a steroid or prosthetic enhancement tool. How high can you jump?"

Davis scratched at the back of his head and shrugged again. Soon he was back at the line, and he got down into a lunge position before running into a flying leap, one which earned a sound of awe from Pinamon. "I didn't know he flew!" the Digimon exclaimed.

Davis' feet hit the ground with a loud thud and his knees bent, before he quickly stood up again and turned around to face Tai. "How was that?" Again, Taichi was left staring stupidly at Davis. Chibimon was doing much the same. Flabbergasted. This time Davis drank up the amazement on their faces. "Maybe this wasn't so bad after all!" he laughed. Suddenly, he wasn't so nervous about school. Not with the promise this brought of how awesome he'd be on the soccer team.

"You jumped high enough to go clear over my head!" Taichi exclaimed. "Come on!" he said and grabbed Davis' wrist and dragged him towards a set of stairs, only just remembering to grab the Digimon. He took Davis down underneath the stadium where the locker rooms and weight training rooms were located. Tai sat the boy at the lat pulldown, set the weight to 80 pounds, and signaled for Davis to begin.

Davis grabbed the bar and pulled. It seemed like he wasn't even feeling it. "More weight," he said, letting down the bar after a moment. When Tai put on more weight, it seemed to be more of a challenge, but Davis still pulled on the bar with little problem.

"Is that a lot?" Pinamon asked from where he and Chibimon were perched on the treadmills.

Taichi nodded dumbly. "He's lifting 110 pounds and he hasn't even broken a sweat. Davis, this is unreal. People in your physical condition could go to the Olympics with steady enough training! I'd have to work my butt off to get anywhere near the level you're at right now!"

"Sweet," Davis hissed between his teeth as he continued. After a while, he let down the weights and spun on the bench to face Tai. "This is awesome!"

"You bet your freakishly toned butt it is!" Tai exclaimed. "The coach is going to love you! With you on the team, the high school might win its third national championship in a row! That would be a record!"

Davis grinned widely, before looking back at the machine. "Let me try it with a little more, Taichi."

The older teen nodded. "Okay, but not too much. We're only going up to 120 pounds. I'm not gonna let you tear something," he said and reset the weights.

Davis nodded, and soon was pulling on the bar again. Finally, he broke a sweat after several sets of reps, and after a while carefully let the bar up. He wiped his forehead with the back of his arm, but was left grinning wildly. "Too awesome," he breathed heavily. "Who would have thought there'd be a benefit in all this?"

"I'm wondering if the Kaiser even knows about these side effects," Tai wondered aloud. "Think about it. If you got this much stronger and more agile, imagine the shape all the Digimon are in now. Everything could easily be evolving at this rate."

"I don't think he does," Davis said, shaking his head. "I mean, he doesn't care about evolving them. He just wants to keep them contained so they don't attack him. And besides, most of them aren't wearing spirals, just rings."

"Who said the rings don't have the same effect?" Tai responded. "Rings might be first generation control compared to the spirals, but they could easily have the same enhancing powers." Taichi frowned now, thoughts turning to more serious matters. "He could be in real trouble. If those Digimon feel trapped and angry enough, their animalistic instincts can take over in a second and the Kaiser will have a real disaster on his hands."

Davis groaned, resting his chin in his hand. "If only I could have busted out the DigiEggs. Then we could already be taking the rings and spirals off those Digimon."

Tai grinned knowing how much Davis wished he could help, but also seeing the bigger picture. "Could we really, Davis?" he asked. "How would we get there? All the gates have been destroyed. You said so yourself the one you took was one way."

"There has to be a way," Davis insisted with a whine. "You were the one who managed to make yourself digital, right? Straight through a computer screen when you fought Diaboromon!" Davis then scrambled to his feet, pumping his fists in front of him. "Crazier things have happened than us opening our own gate!"

"Davis..." For the first time since their reunion, Taichi looked sad. "I can't connect with Agumon anymore. I can't feel him."

"Impossible!" Davis retorted. "There has to be a way. I know it's a long shot, but we can't just leave everything like this."

"Davis! Just drop it! Okay?!" That was also the first time Taichi ever snapped at the younger boy.

Davis jumped, shrinking visibly when Tai shouted. He stared at the other boy for a moment before looking down at his feet. "Okay... sorry," he mumbled.

Taichi sighed with a hand on his head. "No, I'm sorry... Davis, you need to understand. It's taken all of us a really long time to accept the separation from our Digimon. It nearly killed us to see them turned into eggs and then taken away. Yamato... I thought I was going to lose him too. It was like a part of us died, Davis. We all have this hole in us that can't be filled. We know our Digimon are over there, and that hurts even worse. It... It fucking sucks to know how close they are, but we can't even feel them." The young man sighed sadly. "I can't tell you how many times I poured myself over a computer trying to get back to Agumon. I thought the same thing you did. If I did it once, why not again? But without Agumon to bring me over... There's nothing I can do."

Even though it was clear Davis still didn't believe there was nothing that could be done, it was also obvious that he didn't want to fight with Taichi over it. He would still be shouting and pumping his fists and carrying on if it were any other Chosen Child, but not Tai. "Okay, Taichi. I'm sorry for bringing it up," he said quietly.

"It's okay," Tai said with a nod. "I just wish I still had the kind of hope and determination that you do." He sighed again. "I hate myself for giving up, but we just ran out of ideas."

Davis swallowed, looking down at his arms. Suddenly, he held up the one with the bracelet around it that Wormmon gave him. "See this?" Davis said. "That gate I came through... I can get back with this," he said. "And once we all put our heads together and figure out how to crack that case, I'm gonna go back in there and get the DigiEggs out."

Taichi’s head immediately snapped up to look at Davis' wrist. "You can get back?!" Tai rushed over and grabbed the boy's arm to get a good look at the bracelet. "Why didn't you mention this before? Davis! Izzy could study this and maybe even make more! We could all potentially go back to the Digital World!"

"Sorry," Davis said sheepishly. "I just... didn't want a reason to go back at first," Davis said, looking at the bracelet. "But now I know that I have to." He grinned then. "Hopefully we will be able to make more... But if not," Davis said, finally looking back at Taichi. "If not, the first DigiEgg I'm bringing back is Agumon's. And I'll go back as many times as I have to until we have them all."

Tai just laughed, loud and happy, and ruffled Davis' short hair. "See? This is why I knew you'd make a great leader."

Davis grinned widely, happy to be receiving praise rather than scolding. The tense atmosphere seemed to lift instantly and he straightened up, grabbing Tai's hand in a tight, meaningful grip. "I need to make up for leaving for four years," he said. "And even if it takes another four years, we're going to win this one way or another."

Tai nodded and squeezed back. "That's the spirit."


	14. Ichiro Otsuka

Tai made sure Davis was ready when the first day of school came. He had a backpack full of empty binders and folders, paper and pencils. Pinamon and Chibimon were set up with enough food to last them until Tai got back from his morning class, and Davis finally had a small wrack where all of Tai's old clothes hung for him to choose from. Davis dressed in his idol's old outfit of choice—a layering of a yellow shirt and a blue shirt with brown shorts, oversized socks, and sneakers. Somehow, it made him feel more confident. Goggles were secured, keeping his bangs out of his face, and he was now nibbling on half of a toasted bagel as he stood in the foyer and checked the time. "Someone said they'd come over and walk me until I know the way by myself, right?" he called in to the bedroom where Tai was getting prepared for his own classes.

"Yeah, TK lives closest so he'll be coming by to get you. He should be here in about five minutes. Oh! And make sure you take your meds," Tai called back from his bedroom where he was pulling on a pair of socks. "He has your class schedule already. Izzy managed into the school's computer system and you're all set up as a transfer student from Shibuya. The best we could do is make you a single child from a foster home. That way, it's not as suspicious for there to be limited files about you."

"Alright, I'll try and remember that," Davis said, sighing quietly as he had to edge into the bathroom to take the medication. He still didn't like it, even though Joe convinced him that it was necessary. It just didn't feel right, but he sucked it up and dealt with it without complaining—like he did profusely when he first started.

Tai slipped in behind Davis in the bathroom to take his own meds. He always tried to take his at the same time as Davis in hopes that the boy wouldn't feel so self-conscious about it. "Did you have any juice?" he asked, now in the kitchen and pouring himself a glass.

"Yeah," Davis responded as he put his bagel back into his mouth, taking to waiting in the foyer again, standing where he could see into the kitchen. "I had everything except this," he said, gesturing to his bagel as he continued to talk around nibbling on it. "I'm ready to go as soon as TK gets here."

Tai was smiling when he pulled the glass from his lips. "You seem pretty eager to try high school, Davis. I'm surprised."

"I'm psyched for soccer tryouts this afternoon," Davis clarified with a smirk.

The older teen laughed. "Ah, so that's it. At least you're honest." Suddenly the doorbell rang and Tai gestured for Davis to open it, knowing it could be no one else except TK.

"G'morning!" Davis yawned as he swung the door open. "Took ya long enough."

"Yeah, yeah, says the kid who was always late for class in elementary school," TK replied with a grin and held his hand up in a youthful greeting. "Or is Ichiro Otsuka the kind of guy who's actually going to be on time for everything and make all A's?"

"Oh yeah, Ichiro's gonna kick ass," Davis said with a smirk. "Man, I'm not gonna remember that name."

"Well you'd better," TK insisted. "Daisuke Motomiya died four years ago. It's only while you're at school. Ichiro Otsuka. Ichiro Otsuka. Ichiro Otsuka."

"Once everyone starts calling me that, I guess I'll get used to it," Davis said with a long exhale. He then looked over his shoulder as he walked out the door. "Well, see ya later Taichi! And be good Pinamon, Chibimon!"

"Good luck!" Tai called as he waved after them. Out on the street, TK couldn't help looking over how Davis was dressed. The blond was stuck in cool grey slacks with a black belt, a white button-down shirt which was tucked in, and a blue-grey jacket with the school emblem on the right pocket. "Oh man, transfer students are so lucky. You get that one week of dress code freedom. I think that's the one thing I miss about elementary school. No uniforms."

"I'm not looking forward to the uniforms. Or having to get fitted for them," Davis responded with a groan. He then glanced over at how TK was dressed and could only come up with, "It's weird seeing you with no hat."

TK frowned and touched the top of his head. "Yeah, I miss my hat, too. Oh yeah!" He reached into his carrier bag and pulled out the paper with Davis' schedule on it. "I'll fill you in on classes. You’re in with Kari, but we all study the same materials across classes at the same time. First is 17th century history. Right now, we're studying when the Tokugawa Shogunate instituted the Sakoku. That's when all the foreigners were expelled and no one was allowed to enter or leave Japan. Second period is early-modern literature. Right now, everyone is reading selected volumes from _Nanso Satomi Hakkenden_. There's a short essay due on volumes one, three, and nine next week. Third period is algebra II where we just started learning about polynomials. Kari says your teacher likes to give pop quizzes. Fourth period is lunch hour. Fifth hour is gym. Since the weather is so warm, they're doing baseball right now. Sixth period is economics, and then seventh period is your elective."

"Jeez," Davis sighed, taking the paper into his hands. "I didn't catch half of what you just said."

TK just smiled and patted Davis on the back. "Don't worry. You'll get the hang of it, and you've got Kari with you all day. If anyone can make you feel better under stress, she can."

"Do you think they'd let me drop one of these for art or something?" Davis said as he looked over the academic classes he had. "This is gonna slaughter me."

"Um... maybe." TK scratched the back of his head. "Freshman don't normally get free range pick like that. If you want art your first year, it has to be your elective. Our sophomore year is when we get into recreational stuff. From what I hear, we take art, music, and theater all at the same time, but they rotate through each day."

Davis just exhaled and folded the paper up, slipping it into his shorts pocket. "Oh well. I'll just have to deal with it, I guess. So, how long's the walk there?"

TK pointed. "Just right around the corner here. Kari should be waiting for us at the gate." Sure enough, she was there in her grey pleated skirt, white shirt, and blue-grey hanging bow under the collar. TK sped up just a little so he could greet her. "Morning, Kari," he said and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Ichiro is all ready for his first day. Go easy on him, okay?"

Kari smiled, blushing a bit. "Of course," she said, before turning to Davis. "Did you get your schedule?"

"Yeah," Davis answered, motioning towards his pocket.

"Then we're good to go," Kari said. "You guys got here just before—" Her words were cut off as the school bell rung. "Homeroom. Let's go. See you in first period, TK!" Kari called as she grabbed Davis by the wrist and led him inside.

Classroom 1B was their destination, and Davis would find all eyes on him. It wasn't surprising, given that he wasn't in uniform. A few girls started whispering and giggling to each other over how built and cute Davis was. A group of boys in the back took to studying him as well, maybe scoping out the competition. After all the routine role call and such was taken care of, the teacher called Davis up to the front of the room so he could introduce himself.

When he was given the opportunity to introduce himself, Davis cleared his throat, buying himself time as he ran his story a few times through his head, making sure he had it right. "Hi," he started with a sheepish wave, the other hand holding one strap of the bag he had slung over his shoulder. "My name's Ichiro Otsuka... I just transferred here from, uh... Shibuya."

"What sort of hobbies do you have?" the teacher asked, trying to get the boy to open up a little bit more.

"Well, I like soccer," Davis offered, realizing his hand was still raised and scratching at the back of his head instead.

"Oh? Do you think you'll be joining our team this year?"

"Hopefully," Davis said with a grin. "I'm gonna try out."

"Good, well thank you, Ichiro. You may sit down." A review of some upcoming school events were discussed before the bell rang dismissing the homeroom teachers to be replaced with first period teachers. Davis hoped to have a seat closer to Kari, but since they were arranged alphabetically by last name, he found himself stuck uncomfortably in the middle of the room. When the class started, Davis tried his best to follow the lesson, and thankfully history was straightforward enough that he basically understood it. When it came time for second period, he was a bit more confused, and had to constantly ask Kari what the other kids were talking about. And math was even worse. Finally, lunch period came around and Davis collapsed into his seat with a groan. "This is gonna suck," he grumbled.

"Oh, come on, Davis," Kari said as she sat down next to him with her tray. They were seated far enough away from everyone else that calling him by name wasn't a worry. "It's not so bad. It's only your first day; you'll get the hang of it."

TK nodded in agreement. "It wasn't easy for us at first either. I was almost convinced I wouldn't survive my first week. You have to let yourself fall into it. Just remember that you have all of us with you. Before every test, we get together for study nights. We all help each other get ready. You'll be fine." Blue eyes glanced down the table at some kids who stared at Davis from a few tables over, but when they saw TK looking at _them_, they all turned away. "The hard part is surviving the food chain."

"Food chain?" Davis asked, looking up and running his fingers through his hair as he did. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well... high school kids are a lot more judgmental than we were back in elementary," Kari explained gently.

"Great," Davis murmured. "Gotta make sure my first impression's good, then." He smirked, sitting himself up again and pounding his fist to his chest. "And it will be. Anyone that comes to see the soccer tryouts will know I'm not messin' around."

"Right!" TK said encouragingly. "You keep that positive attitude up, and no one will think less of you." The blond boy smiled. "I got lucky and have Yamato's fame to ride on, but you'll find your own way of standing out."

"You guys should come see too," Davis suggested. "Blow your mind."

"When did you even play last?" Yolei asked from where she sat next to TK.

"Doesn't matter," Davis said, shaking his head. "I'm gonna be captain by mid-afternoon."

TK smirked. "Well I heard Davis got all beefed up while he was away," he said and leaned in on one elbow. "Apparently, he's ripping up the field, jumping over buildings, and lifting cars over his head. Or he might as well be with the way Taichi was going on about him to my brother."

"He speaks the truth!" Davis said with a laugh. "I may as well be a superhero. Team captain will be nothing for my awesome skills."

"Well, I'll come watch," Kari said with a small smile.

"I'll come too. I bet you're just full of hot air," Yolei said, pushing her glasses up her nose.

"You'll see," Davis practically sang, leaning back in his chair with his hands behind his head.

TK just laughed and shook his head before breaking into the bento box his mom packed him for lunch. "I see humility is something you've yet to practice. Better be careful or your head might explode."

"Nothing wrong with some self-confidence," Davis said with a shrug. "And it's well deserved. You'll see." When lunch ended and they moved on to gym, Davis decided to play it down and not do anything particularly spectacular. No, his audience was waiting for him after school. He practically fidgeted all through science, but then it was finally time. Since sports electives had to be tried out for, he spent most of seventh period just waiting around as kids turned out to the field to sign up. And then when school was out, it was time for tryouts. Davis was given a spare sports uniform and kept on the sneakers he wore to school, taking his place in the long line of boys trying out for the team. At the same time, Kari was ushering TK and Yolei up into the bleachers so they could get a good view of the field.

"Otsuka!" the coach belted out the name when it was finally Davis' turn. He looked the kid up and down, silently impressed with such an athletic build. "You're a freshman, is that correct? All right, Otsuka, I want you to kick the first ball in a serpentine pattern into the home goal over there. Next, you're going to steal a pass from our two seniors Hyosuke and Jiro. After that, you'll kick as many of the seven balls lined up over there into the guest goal. Is that clear?"

"Got it!" Davis responded and was immediately off. The first task was nothing; he practically sped the ball across the field, weaving around imaginary players and rocketing it into the goal. He then moved on to the seniors, stealing the ball easily and also shooting it across the field. And last, the line of balls. One, two, three... each one shot into the goal fast with great precision. The seventh ball hit the metal edge of the soccer goal, but shot off in such an angle that it joined the rest in the goal. Davis pumped his fists in the air and hissed quietly to himself, "I'm the man!"

Everyone cheered, both on the field and in the bleachers. The coach was also nodding with a subtle grin. This kid was good. Most boys could only get four or five of the balls in on their first try, and only half could get the ball from his seniors. "That was good, Otsuka!" he called and waved Davis back in. "Did you play soccer at your last school?"

"Sure did!" Davis called as he ran back to the coach, over to him in practically a few seconds. "I was team captain there."

"Well I bet they were cryin' when they had to let you go. You keep this up, and you'll be freshman captain before our first game." The coach turned back to the rest of the kids. "If I call your name, step forward! Fujimaki, Amagawa, Tamuro, Mizoguchi, Baisotei, Eguchi, Arihyoshi, Yamakazi, Yamabe, Uoya, Okubo, Gakusha, and Inouye! All of you are to follow Otsuka in five complete laps around this field. Congratulations, you all made the team!"

Davis grinned widely in victory. Here was his chance to shine. He lined up at the front of the newly formed team, and as soon as they were signaled to start, he took off.

"Whoa!" Kari squeaked from up in the stands.

"I guess he wasn't kidding," Yolei added, fixing her glasses.

"I just hope he doesn't let it all go to his head," TK said. "I won't lie and say this isn't impressive, but we need to keep him in check." He looked at Kari. "We can't let him grab too much attention. If just one person recognizes him, we might have a big fiasco on our hands. It's not every day a kid comes back from the dead after four years."

Kari nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we're going to have to make sure he's careful," she said as she watched Davis lap the rest of the kids. She put on a small frown then. "And less practically, he's very prone to getting an over-inflated ego anyway."

TK wrapped one arm around the girl's shoulders. "But you've been living with Taichi all your life, so I'm sure you know how to handle a guy like that," he said with a gentle laugh.

Kari giggled a bit, though she got a sad look on her face at the same time. "But Taichi's been able to grow up and adjust. He's far more mature now. Davis didn't really get that chance."

TK. "That's true. I guess I like to believe that Davis will just get the hang of it, but it probably doesn't work that way. Davis loved being a kid, so it's probably going to be really hard for him to let go of that feeling. I guess we just... Have to keep that much closer of an eye on him."

"Mhm," Kari said, again nodding in agreement. "Hopefully that'll be enough." She then looked back to the field and tilted her head to the side a bit. "He's still going..."

"Really?" TK looked to the field as well. "He must have run at least eight laps by now." TK then cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "Ichiro! Ichiro!" When he got Davis' attention, he made a gesture like 'slow down.'

Davis sort of slowed to a jog in place, legs still moving as he looked up at TK from where he was on the field. After a few moments of quizzical staring, he got the message and finished the lap he was doing with a light jog before stopping in front of the coach, wiping sweat from his brow with the back of his arm.

The coach was practically beaming when Davis came to stand in front of him. "Otsuka, you are incredible! I can already taste our victory at nationals. It's gonna be you and me up there holding that trophy! Now I'm sure you understand we have to go through the formalities of a few more practice sessions before actually picking a captain, but I can almost guarantee you'll be my top pick. You keep this up, Otsuka, and you can get a scholarship!"

"Really?" Davis breathed, a toothy grin coming over his face. "Thanks, sir!" The trouble he had keeping up in his classes that day seemed to just melt away with those words. When the other kids finished, they were dismissed to get showered and changed back into their school clothes to walk home, and Davis walked into that locker room feeling like a million bucks.

"Hey, big shot!" Davis would find himself suddenly shoved into the lockers by the student known as Inouye, and coming to stand behind him were Tamuro and Yamabe. "What's your damage!? You just come waltzing in here on your first day and think you're hot shit? None of us are impressed. In fact, we think you need to take it down a notch, or we're gonna knock you down instead."


End file.
